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they honor by painting. And since death plunders nature, which is mortal, by mixing colors and placing their images on tablets, they contrive for the memory to become much longer than life. But we are writing the life of a teacher of philosophy who emulated the commonwealth in heaven; but we are not painting the features of bodies, nor are we showing their impressions to those who do not know, but we are sketching the forms of invisible souls, and we are showing unseen wars and invisible conflicts. p.4 For such was the complete armor that Paul, their general and champion of their phalanx, put around them; “For take up,” he says, “the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand against in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” And again: “Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” Having clothed them in this panoply, he led them into the contests. For such also is the nature of the enemies, incorporeal, invisible, approaching unseen, plotting in secret, lying in wait and attacking suddenly. And teaching this, this same general said: “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” But nevertheless, though the company of these saints had such adversaries, or rather each of them being surrounded by so many and such enemies—for they did not attack all in common, but now they assaulted this one, now that one—they won so brilliant a victory that their adversaries fled, while they pursued them with all their might, and raised a trophy with no one standing in their way. p.5 It was not nature that provided them the victory—for this is mortal, and full of countless passions—, but their resolution, which drew down divine grace. For having become ardent lovers of the divine beauty, and having gladly chosen to do and to suffer all things for the beloved, they bore nobly the revolt of the passions, and they stoutly repelled the volleys of the devil's arrows, and, to speak apostolically, having disciplined and enslaved the body, they soothed the flames of anger, and they forced the raging madness of the desires to keep quiet. And by fasting and sleeping on the ground, having thus put the passions to sleep and having stopped their stirrings, they compelled the body to make a truce with the soul, and they put an end to their innate war. p.6 And so, having arbitrated peace for them, they drove out the whole throng of the adversaries. For not having the inner thoughts that betray them and being deprived of the cooperation of human members, they were not able to make war. For the devil uses our members as arrows against us. For if the eyes are not enticed, nor the ears charmed, nor the sense of touch tickled, nor the mind accepting evil counsels, the effort of those plotting is in vain. For just as an enemy could not take a city built upon a height and walled about with strong ramparts and surrounded on all sides by deep ravines, unless someone from within betrays it and opens some small gates, so it is impossible for the demons warring from without to overcome a soul surrounded by divine grace, unless the carelessness of some thought should open a small gate of our senses and receive the enemy inside it. These things clearly by the

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τῇ ζωγραφίᾳ γεραίρουσιν. Καὶ ἐπειδὴ θνητὴν οὖσαν ὁ θάνατος τὴν φύσιν ληΐζεται, χρώματα κεραννύντες καὶ τὰ ἐκείνων ταῖς σανίσιν ἐντιθέντες ἰνδάλματα, πολλῷ τῆς ζωῆς μακροτέραν γενέσθαι τὴν μνήμην σοφίζονται. Ἡμεῖς δὲ βίον μὲν συγγράφομεν φιλοσοφίας διδάσκαλον καὶ τὴν ἐν οὐρανοῖς πολιτείαν ἐζηλωκότα· ζωγραφοῦμεν δὲ οὐ τῶν σωμάτων τοὺς χαρακτῆρας, οὐδὲ τὰ τούτων ἐκτυπώματα τοῖς ἀγνοοῦσιν ἐπιδείκνυμεν, ἀλλὰ τῶν ἀοράτων ψυχῶν τὰς ἰδέας σκιογραφοῦμεν, καὶ πολέμους ἀθεάτους καὶ συμπλοκὰς ἀφανεῖς ἐπιδείκνυμεν. p.4 Τοιαύτην γὰρ αὐτοῖς καὶ τὴν παντευχίαν ὁ τῆς φάλαγγος αὐτῶν στρατηγὸς καὶ πρόμαχος περιτέθηκε Παῦλος· "Ἀναλάβετε γάρ, φησι, τὴν πανοπλίαν τοῦ θεοῦ ἵνα δυνηθῆτε ἀντιστῆναι ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τῇ πονηρᾷ καὶ ἅπαντα κατεργασάμενοι στῆναι". Καὶ πάλιν· "Στῆτε οὖν περιζωσάμενοι τὴν ὀσφὺν ἐν ἀληθείᾳ, καὶ ἐνδυσάμενοι τὸν θώρακα τῆς δικαιοσύνης, καὶ ὑποδησάμενοι τοὺς πόδας ἐν ἑτοιμασίᾳ τοῦ εὐαγγελίου τῆς εἰρήνης, ἐπὶ πᾶσιν ἀναλα βόντες τὸν θυρεὸν τῆς πίστεως, ἐν ᾧ δυνήσεσθε πάντα τὰ βέλη τοῦ πονηροῦ τὰ πεπυρωμένα σβέσαι, καὶ τὴν περικεφαλαίαν τοῦ σωτηρίου δέξασθαι, καὶ τὴν μάχαιραν τοῦ πνεύματος, ὅ ἐστι ῥῆμα θεοῦ." Ταύτην αὐτοὺς τὴν πανοπλίαν ἐνδύσας εἰς τοὺς ἀγῶνας εἰσήγαγεν. Τοιαύτη γὰρ καὶ τῶν πολεμίων ἡ φύσις, ἀσώματος, ἀόρατος, ἀφανῶς ἐπιοῦσα, κρύβδην ἐπιβουλεύουσα, λοχῶσα καὶ ἐξαπιναίως προσβάλλουσα. Καὶ τοῦτο διδάσκων αὐτὸς οὗτος ὁ στρατηγὸς ἔλεγεν· "Οὐκ ἔστιν ἡμῖν ἡ πάλη πρὸς αἷμα καὶ σάρκα, ἀλλὰ πρὸς τὰς ἀρχὰς, πρὸς τὰς ἐξουσίας, πρὸς τοὺς κοσμο κράτορας τοῦ σκότους τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου, πρὸς τὰ πνευματικὰ τῆς πονηρίας ἐν τοῖς ἐπουρανίοις." Ἀλλ' ὅμως καὶ τοιούτους ἔχουσα τοὺς ἀντιπάλους ἡ τῶν ἁγίων τούτων συμμορία, μᾶλλον δὲ τούτων ἕκαστος ὑπὸ τοσούτων καὶ τοιούτων πολεμίων κυκλούμενος-οὔτε γὰρ κοινῇ πᾶσιν ἐπῄεσαν, ἀλλὰ νῦν μὲν τούτῳ, νῦν δὲ ἐκείνῳ προσέβαλλον-οὕτω λαμπρὰν ἀνεδήσαντο νίκην ὡς τοὺς μὲν ἀντιπάλους δραπετεῦσαι, τούτους δὲ κατὰ κράτος διῶξαι, καὶ τρόπαιον ἐγεῖραι μηδενὸς ἐμποδὼν γενομένου. p.5 Παρεῖχε δὲ αὐτοῖς τὴν νίκην οὐχ ἡ φύσις-θνητὴ γὰρ αὕτη, καὶ παθῶν μυρίων ἀνάπλεως-, ἀλλ' ἡ γνώμη τὴν θείαν χάριν ἐφελκομένη. Ἐρασταὶ γὰρ θερμοὶ τοῦ θείου κάλλους γενόμενοι, καὶ ἀσπασίως ἅπαντα καὶ δρᾶσαι καὶ παθεῖν ὑπὲρ τοῦ ἐρωμένου ἑλόμενοι, ἤνεγκαν μὲν γενναίως τὴν τῶν παθῶν ἐπανάστασιν, ἀπεκρούσαντο δὲ καρτερῶς τῶν τοῦ διαβόλου βελῶν τὰς νιφάδας, καὶ ἀπο στολικῶς εἰπεῖν, τὸ σῶμα πιέσαντες καὶ δουλαγωγήσαντες τὰς μὲν τοῦ θυμοῦ φλεγμονὰς κατεπράϋναν, τῶν ἐπιθυμιῶν δὲ τὸ λυσσῶδες ἡσυχίαν ἄγειν ἠνάγκασαν. Ἀπαστίᾳ δὲ καὶ χαμευνίᾳ οὕτω τὰ πάθη κοιμήσαντες καὶ τὰ τούτων σκιρτήματα καταπαύσαντες, σπείσασθαι τὸ σῶμα πρὸς τὴν ψυχὴν κατηνάγκασαν, καὶ τὸν ἔμφυτον τούτων κατέ λυσαν πόλεμον. p.6 Οὕτω δὲ αὐτοῖς τὴν εἰρήνην βραβεύσαντες, ἅπαν τῶν ἐναντίων τὸ στῖφος ἐξήλασαν. Τοὺς γὰρ τὰ ἔνδον προϊεμένους λογισμοὺς οὐκ ἔχοντες καὶ τῆς τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων μελῶν συνεργίας ἐστερημένοι, πολεμεῖν οὐκ ἠδύναντο. Βέλεσι γὰρ καθ' ἡμῶν ὁ διάβολος τοῖς ἡμετέροις μέλεσι κέχρηται. Ὀφθαλμῶν γὰρ μὴ δελεαζομένων, μηδὲ ἀκοῶν καταθελγομένων, μηδὲ γαργαλιζομένης ἁφῆς, μηδὲ τοῦ νοῦ τὰ πονηρὰ δεχομένου βουλεύματα, μάταιος τοῖς ἐπι βουλεύουσιν ἡ σπουδή. Ὥσπερ γὰρ πόλιν ἐφ' ὕψους ᾠκοδομημένην καὶ περιβόλοις ὀχυροῖς περιτετειχισμένην καὶ φάραγξι βαθείαις πάντοθεν κυκλουμένην, οὐκ ἄν τις ἕλοι πολέμιος, μή τινος τῶν ἔνδον προϊεμένου καὶ πυλίδας τινὰς ὑπανοίγοντος, οὕτως ἀδύνατον τοῖς ἔξωθεν πολεμοῦσι δαίμοσι τῆς ὑπὸ τῆς θείας χάριτος κυκλουμένης περιγενέσθαι ψυχῆς, εἰ μή τινος λογισμοῦ ῥᾳστώνη πυλίδα τινὰ τῶν ἐν ἡμῖν αἰσθητηρίων ἀνοίξειε καὶ ταύτης εἴσω τὸν πολέμιον δέξαιτο. Ταῦτα σαφῶς ὑπὸ τῆς