John Chrysostom, On Holy Easter

the countless good things have been brought in; through this the deceit of the demons was destroyed; through this we laugh at death; through this we despise the present life; through this we hasten towards the desire of the things to come; through this, though clothed in a body, we have nothing less than the bodiless, if we are willing. Today our splendid victory-prize has been won; today our Master, having set up the trophy against death, and having destroyed the tyranny of the devil, has granted the way to salvation through the resurrection. Let us all, therefore, rejoice, leap, be glad. For even if our Master conquered and set up the trophy, yet the gladness and the joy are common to us as well.

For for the sake of our salvation he worked all things; and through those things by which the devil wrestled us down, through these 52.768 Christ overcame him. He took the very same weapons, and with these he contended against him; and how, listen. A virgin and a tree and death became the symbols of our defeat. For Eve was a virgin; for she did not yet know a man, when she endured the deceit; a tree was the wood; death was the penalty against Adam. Do you see how a virgin and a tree and death became for us the symbols of defeat? See, therefore, how these same things again became the causes of victory. Instead of Eve, Mary; instead of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the wood of the cross; instead of the death of Adam, the Master's death. Do you see that through the things by which he conquered, through these he is defeated? By the tree the devil contended against Adam; by the cross Christ wrestled down the devil. And that wood sent men to Hades, but this wood, that of the cross, also called back again from Hades those who had departed; and that one hid the defeated man, as if a captive and naked, but this one showed the victor naked and nailed on high to all. And the one death condemned also those after it; but the other truly raised up even those before it. Who will tell of the mighty acts of the Lord, or make all his praises to be heard? From death we have become immortal, from a fall we have been raised, from defeat we have been made victors.

3. These are the achievements of the cross, this is the greatest

proof of the resurrection. Today angels leap, and all the heavenly powers rejoice, delighting together in the salvation of the common race of men.

For if over one sinner who repents there is joy in heaven and on earth, much more over the salvation of the whole world. Today, having freed human nature from the tyranny of the devil, he has led it back to its former nobility. For when I see my own first-fruits thus having overcome death, I no longer fear, I no longer dread the war; nor do I look to my own weakness, but I consider the ineffable power of the one who is about to fight with me. For he who overcame the tyranny of death, and took away all its strength, what then will he not do for his kinsman, whose form he deigned to take up through great love for mankind, and through it to make his struggle against the devil? Today there is joy everywhere in the world and spiritual gladness. Today also the company of angels and the choir of all the powers above rejoice because of the salvation of men.

Consider, therefore, beloved, the greatness of the joy, that even the powers above celebrate with us; for they rejoice with our good things. For even if the grace from the Master is ours, yet the pleasure is theirs also. For this reason they are not ashamed to celebrate with us. And what am I saying, that our fellow-servants are not ashamed to celebrate with us? The Master himself of them and of us is not ashamed to celebrate with us. And what have I said, is not ashamed? He even desires to celebrate with us. From where

τὰ μυρία ἀγαθὰ εἰσενή νεκται· διὰ ταύτην ἡ τῶν δαιμόνων ἀπάτη κατελύθη· διὰ ταύτην καταγελῶμεν θανάτου· διὰ ταύτην ὑπερορῶμεν τῆς παρούσης ζωῆς· διὰ ταύτην πρὸς τὴν τῶν μελλόντων ἐπιθυμίαν ἐπειγόμεθα· διὰ ταύτην, σῶμα περικείμενοι, οὑδὲν ἔλαττον τῶν ἀσω μάτων ἔχομεν, ἐὰν βουλώμεθα. Σήμερον ἡμῶν τὰ λαμπρὰ νικητήρια γέγονε· σήμερον ἡμῶν ὁ ∆εσπό της τὸ κατὰ τοῦ θανάτου τρόπαιον στήσας, καὶ τοῦ διαβόλου τὴν τυραννίδα καταλύσας, τὴν διὰ τῆς ἀνα στάσεως ὁδὸν εἰς σωτηρίαν ἐχαρίσατο. Πάντες τοίνυν χαίρωμεν, σκιρτῶμεν, ἀγαλλώμεθα. Εἰ γὰρ καὶ ὁ ∆εσπότης ἡμῶν ἐνίκησε καὶ τὸ τρόπαιον ἔστησεν, ἀλλὰ κοινὴ καὶ ἡμῶν ἡ εὐφροσύνη καὶ ἡ χαρά.

∆ιὰ γὰρ τὴν ἡμετέραν σωτηρίαν πάντα εἰργάσατο· καὶ δι' ὧν ἡμᾶς κατεπάλαισεν ὁ διάβολος, διὰ τούτων 52.768 αὐτοῦ περιεγένετο ὁ Χριστός. Αὐτὰ τὰ ὅπλα ἔλαβε, καὶ τούτοις αὐτὸν κατηγωνίσατο· καὶ πῶς, ἄκουε. Παρθένος καὶ ξύλον καὶ θάνατος τῆς ἡμετέρας ἥττης γέγονε τὰ σύμβολα. Καὶ γὰρ παρθένος ἦν ἡ Εὔα· οὐδέπω γὰρ ἄνδρα ἐγίνωσκεν, ὅτε τὴν ἀγάπην ὑπ έμεινε· ξύλον ἦν τὸ δένδρον· θάνατος τὸ ἐπιτίμιον τὸ κατὰ τοῦ Ἀδάμ. Εἶδες πῶς παρθένος καὶ ξύλον καὶ θάνατος γέγονεν ἡμῖν τῆς ἥττης τὰ σύμβολα; Ὅρα τοίνυν πῶς καὶ τῆς νίκης αὐτὰ πάλιν γέγονε παραί τια. Ἀντὶ τῆς Εὔας ἡ Μαρία· ἀντὶ τοῦ ξύλου τοῦ εἰδέναι γνωστὸν καλοῦ καὶ πονηροῦ, τὸ ξύλον τοῦ σταυροῦ· ἀντὶ τοῦ θανάτου τοῦ Ἀδὰμ, ὁ ∆εσποτικὸς θάνατος. Εἶδες δι' ὧν ἐνίκησε, διὰ τούτων αὐτὸν ἡτ τώμενον; Περὶ τὸ δένδρον κατηγωνίσατο τὸν Ἀδὰμ ὁ διάβολος· περὶ τὸν σταυρὸν κατεπάλαισε τὸν διάβο λον ὁ Χριστός. Κἀκεῖνο μὲν τὸ ξύλον εἰς ᾅδην ἔπεμπε, τοῦτο δὲ τὸ ξύλον, τὸ τοῦ σταυροῦ, καὶ τοὺς ἀπελ θόντας ἐκ τοῦ ᾅδου πάλιν ἀνεκαλεῖτο· κἀκεῖνο μὲν καθάπερ αἰχμάλωτον καὶ γυμνὸν ἔκρυπτε τὸν ἡττη θέντα, τοῦτο δὲ τὸν νικητὴν γυμνὸν προσηλωμένον ἐφ' ὑψηλοῦ πᾶσιν ἐδείκνυ. Καὶ θάνατος ὁ μὲν καὶ τοὺς μετ' αὐτὸν κατέκρινεν· ὁ δὲ καὶ τοὺς πρὸ αὐτοῦ ἀνέστησεν ἀληθῶς. Τίς λαλήσει τὰς δυναστείας τοῦ Κυρίου, ἀκουστὰς ποιήσει πάσας τὰς αἰνέ σεις αὐτοῦ; Ἀπὸ θανάτου γεγόναμεν ἀθάνατοι, ἀπὸ πτώσεως ἀνέστημεν, ἀπὸ ἡττήματος κατέστημεν νι κηταί.

γʹ. Ταῦτα τοῦ σταυροῦ τὰ κατορθώματα, ταῦτα τῆς ἀναστάσεως μεγίστη

ἀπόδειξις. Σήμερον ἅγγελοι σκιρτῶσι, καὶ πᾶσαι αἱ οὐράνιαι δυνάμεις ἀγάλλον ται, συνηδόμεναι ἐπὶ τῇ σωτηρίᾳ τοῦ κοινοῦ γένους τῶν ἀνθρώπων.

Εἰ γὰρ ἐπὶ ἑνὶ ἁμαρτωλῷ μετανοοῦντι χαρὰ γίνεται ἐν οὐρανῷ καὶ ἐπὶ γῆς, πολλῷ μᾶλλον ἐπὶ τῇ σωτηρίᾳ τῆς οἰκουμένης. Σήμερον τὴν ἀνθρω πείαν φύσιν, τῆς τοῦ διαβόλου τυραννίδος ἐλευθερώ σας, πρὸς τὴν προτέραν εὐγένειαν ἐπανήγαγεν. Ὅταν γὰρ ἴδω τὴν ἀπαρχὴν τὴν ἐμὴν οὕτω τοῦ θανάτου περιγεγενημένην, οὐκ ἔτι δέδοικα, οὐκ ἔτι φρίττω τὸν πόλεμον· οὐδὲ πρὸς τὴν ἀσθένειαν ὁρῶ τὴν ἐμαυ τοῦ, ἀλλ' ἐννοῶ τοῦ μέλλοντός μοι συμμαχεῖν τὴν ἄφατον δύναμιν. Ὁ γὰρ τῆς τοῦ θανάτου τυραννίδος περιγενόμενος, καὶ πᾶσαν αὐτοῦ τὴν ἰσχὺν ἀφελόμε νος, τί λοιπὸν οὐκ ἐργάσεται περὶ τὸ ὁμογενὲς, καὶ οὗ τὴν μορφὴν ἀναλαβεῖν διὰ πολλὴν φιλανθρωπίαν κατηξίωσε, καὶ διὰ ταύτης τὴν πρὸς τὸν διάβολον πάλην ποιήσασθαι; Σήμερον χαρὰ πανταχοῦ τῆς οἰκουμένης καὶ εὐφροσύνη πνευματική. Σήμερον καὶ τῶν ἀγγέλων ὁ δῆμος καὶ πασῶν τῶν ἄνω δυνάμεων ὁ χορὸς διὰ τὴν τῶν ἀνθρώπων σωτηρίαν ἀγάλλονται.

Ἐννόησον τοίνυν, ἀγαπητὲ, χαρᾶς μέγεθος, ὅτι καὶ αἱ ἄνω δυνάμεις ἡμῖν συνεορτάζουσι· συγχαίρουσι γὰρ τοῖς ἡμετέροις ἀγαθοῖς. Καὶ γὰρ εἰ καὶ ἡμετέρα ἡ χάρις ἡ παρὰ τοῦ ∆εσπότου, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐκείνων ἡ ἡδονή. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο οὐκ ἐπαισχύνονται ἡμῖν συνεορτά σαι. Καὶ τί λέγω, ὅτι οἱ σύνδουλοι ἡμῖν οὐκ ἐπαισχύ νονται συνεορτάσαι; Αὐτὸς ὁ ∆εσπότης αὐτῶν τε καὶ ἡμῶν οὐκ ἐπαισχύνεται ἡμῖν συνεορτάσαι. Τί δὲ εἶπον, οὐκ ἐπαισχύνεται; Καὶ ἐπιθυμεῖ συνεορτάσαι ἡμῖν. Πόθεν