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Christ? Say to him: In order that he might crucify the devil. If he says to you, Why was he hanged on a tree? Say to him: In order that he might revoke the sin that came through a tree in paradise. If he says to you, Why did he also wear thorns? Say to him: In order that he might root out the thorns and thistles of Adam; for he was condemned to groan and to tremble, and to farm thorns and thistles. Jesus, therefore, being a lover of mankind, wishing to provide for his own creation, endured all things for us, in order that he might free us from condemnation. For just as he was born of a woman, in order that he might wipe away the sin that came to men through a woman; so also he is crowned with thorns, in order that he might make the earth, badly farmed by disobedience, more gentle through his own obedience. But if he says to you, Why did he drink gall and vinegar? Say to him: So that we might vomit out the death-bearing venom of the serpent; for that gall became my sweetness, and that vinegar became my remedy. And if the unbeliever says to you again, Why did he put on a scarlet robe, and why did they approach him kneeling? Say to him: So that the Jews, even unwillingly, might worship him, and against their will confess his kingdom on earth. For now, they worshiped mockingly, not knowing what they were doing; but in the future resurrection every knee will bow, of things in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Amen. But that robe also has another riddle; for not only did it prefigure the kingdom, but it also showed the bloodthirsty and murderous nature of the Jews. And they also gave a reed in his hand, so that their sins might be written down.

These things, then, the Christ-fighters did, being ignorant of the one being crucified, or rather being willfully blinded; but creation did not fail to recognize its own Master and creator. For while the Savior was still hanging on the cross, the physical sun, seeing Christ the sun of righteousness being outraged by the lawless, unable to bear the audacity, flees, darkening the earth, and considering it absurd 50.824 to cooperate and to give light to the eyes that were committing the greatest impiety. And not only did the sun flee, but the earth also was shaken, unable to bear the lawlessness of the things being done, showing and teaching that it was God who was being crucified; therefore it did not endure, but was enraged, not wanting to bear upon itself the God-hating Jews. For Cain, having committed fratricide, did not stain the earth so, nor did the tower-building of the giants weigh it down so, nor did the Sodomites, committing unlawful acts, defile it so, nor those who fashioned idols from it; the shed blood of Zechariah and Abel did not weigh it down as much as the Jews, who dared this great impiety. For because of this, the hard rocks were also split, so that they might learn that this is the spiritual and living rock. For they drank, he says, from a spiritual rock that followed them; and the rock was Christ. O, the ingratitude of the Jews! The rocks were split, and these men are unfeeling; the inanimate things are shaken, and the animate disbelieve; the veil of the temple is torn, so that henceforth their desolation might be shown. For the veil was torn, and the things in the temple were laid bare because of Christ who said: Behold, your house is left to you desolate. For indeed, after the killing of Christ, all the sacred things of the Jews have been made desolate, and the angels who remained in the city and the temple departed from there and came to the Church. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised with Christ, so that we may learn that Christ, having died, does not rise alone, but raises from the dead all those who believe in him.

This, in summary, is the solemn feast of Pascha, and these are the mysteries of the Christians, concerning the resurrection of the dead and eternal life

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ὁ Χριστός; εἰπὲ αὐτῷ· Ἵνα σταυρώσῃ τὸν διάβολον. Ἐὰν εἴπῃ σοι, ∆ιὰ τί ἐκρεμάσθη ἐπὶ ξύλου; εἰπὲ αὐτῷ· Ἵνα τὴν διὰ ξύλου προσγινομένην ἁμαρτίαν ἐν τῷ παραδείσῳ ἀνακαλέσηται. Ἐὰν εἴπῃ σοι, ∆ιὰ τί καὶ ἀκάνθας ἐφόρεσεν; εἰπὲ αὐτῷ· Ἵνα τὰς ἀκάνθας καὶ τοὺς τριβόλους τοῦ Ἀδὰμ ἐκριζώσῃ· ἐκεῖνος γὰρ στένειν καὶ τρέμειν κατεδικάσθη, καὶ ἀκάνθας καὶ τριβόλους γεωργεῖν. Ἰησοῦς οὖν φιλάνθρωπος ὢν, τοῦ ἰδίου ποιήματος θέλων προνοήσασθαι, πάντα ὑπέστη δι ἡμᾶς, ἵνα ἡμᾶς καταδίκης ἐλευθερώσῃ. Ὥσπερ γὰρ ἐγεννήθη διὰ γυναικὸς, ἵνα τὴν ἐκ γυναικὸς προσγενομένην ἁμαρτίαν τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ἀπαλείψῃ· οὕτω καὶ ταῖς ἀκάνθαις στεφανοῦται, ἵνα τὴν κακῶς γεωργηθεῖσαν ὑπὸ τῆς παρακοῆς γῆν διὰ τῆς ἰδίας ὑπακοῆς ἡμερωτέραν ἐργάσηται. Ἐὰν δὲ εἴπῃ σοι, Χολὴν καὶ ὄξος διὰ τί ἔπιεν; εἰπὲ αὐτῷ· Ἵνα ἡμεῖς τὸν θανατηφόρον ἰὸν ἐξεμέσωμεν τοῦ δράκοντος· ἡ γὰρ χολὴ ἐκείνη ἐμὸν γέγονε γλύκασμα, καὶ τὸ ὄξος ἐκεῖνο ἐμὸν γέγονεν ἴαμα. Ἐὰν δέ σοι εἴπῃ πάλιν ὁ ἄπιστος, ∆ιὰ τί καὶ κοκκίνην ἐνεδύσατο χλαμύδα, καὶ διὰ τί ἐγονυπέτουν προσιόντες αὐτῷ, εἰπὲ αὐτῷ· Ἵνα καὶ μὴ θέλοντες αὐτῷ προσκυνήσωσιν οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι, καὶ τὴν βασιλείαν αὐτοῦ καὶ ἄκοντες ἐπὶ γῆς ὁμολογήσωσι. Νῦν μὲν χλευάζοντες προσεκύνουν οὐκ εἰδότες ἅπερ ἔπραττον· ἐν δὲ τῇ μελλούσῃ ἀναστάσει πᾶν γόνυ κάμψει ἐπουρανίων καὶ ἐπιγείων καὶ καταχθονίων, καὶ πᾶσα γλῶσσα ἐξομολογήσεται, ὅτι Κύριος Ἰησοῦς Χριστὸς εἰς δόξαν Θεοῦ Πατρός. Ἀμήν. Ἔχει δὲ καὶ ἡ χλαμὶς ἐκείνη καὶ ἕτερον αἴνιγμα· οὐ μόνον γὰρ τὴν βασιλείαν ὑπετύπου, ἀλλὰ γὰρ καὶ τὸ αἱμοβόρον καὶ φονῶδες τῶν Ἰουδαίων ἐπεδείκνυτο. Ἔδωκαν δὲ καὶ κάλαμον ἐν τῇ χειρὶ αὐτοῦ, ἵνα γραφῶσιν αὐτῶν αἱ ἁμαρτίαι.

Ταῦτα μὲν οὖν οἱ Χριστομάχοι ἐποίουν, ἀγνοοῦντες τὸν σταυρούμενον, μᾶλλον δὲ ἑκουσίως ἀποτυφλωθέντες· ἡ δὲ κτίσις οὐκ ἠγνόησε τὸν ἑαυτῆς ∆εσπότην τε καὶ δημιουργόν. Ἔτι γὰρ τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἐπὶ τοῦ σταυροῦ κρεμαμένου, θεωρήσας ὁ ἥλιος ὁ αἰσθητὸς τὸν ἥλιον τῆς δικαιοσύνης Χριστὸν ὑπὸ τῶν παρανόμων ὑβριζόμενον, μὴ φέρων τὸ τόλμημα, φεύγει σκοτίσας τὴν γῆν, καὶ ἄτοπον ἡγησάμενος 50.824 συνεργεῖν, καὶ φωτίζειν ὀφθαλμοὺς τοὺς τὴν μεγίστην ἀσεβοῦντας ἀσέβειαν. Οὐ μόνον δὲ ὁ ἥλιος ἔφυγεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἡ γῆ ἐκλονεῖτο, μὴ φέρουσα τὴν ἀνομίαν τῶν δρωμένων, ἐνδεικνυμένη δὲ καὶ διδάσκουσα ὅτι Θεὸς ἦν ὁ σταυρούμενος· διὸ καὶ οὐκ ἠνείχετο, ἀλλ ἐχαλέπαινε, μὴ θέλουσα φέρειν ἐφ ἑαυτῆς τοὺς θεοστυγεῖς Ἰουδαίους. Οὐχ οὕτω γὰρ ἀδελφοκτονήσας ἔχρανεν ὁ Κάϊν τὴν γῆν, οὐδ οὕτως ἐβάρησεν αὐτὴν ἡ τῶν γιγάντων πυργοποιία, οὐδ οὕτως αὐτὴν ἐμόλυναν ἀθεμιτουργήσαντες Σοδομῖται, οὐδ αὐτοὶ οἱ τὰ εἴδωλα πλάσαντες ἐξ αὐτῆς· οὐ τὸ αἷμα Ζαχαρίου καὶ Ἄβελ ἐκχυθὲν ἐβάρησεν αὐτὴν οὕτως ὅσον Ἰουδαῖοι, τὸ μέγα τοῦτο τολμήσαντες ἀσέβημα. ∆ιὰ γὰρ τοῦτο καὶ αἱ σκληραὶ πέτραι ἐσχίζοντο, ἵνα μάθωσιν ὅτι οὗτός ἐστιν ἡ πνευματικὴ καὶ ζῶσα πέτρα. Ἔπινον γὰρ, φησὶν, ἐκ πνευματικῆς ἀκολουθούσης πέτρας· ἡ δὲ πέτρα ἦν ὁ Χριστός. Ὢ τῆς Ἰουδαίων ἀγνωμοσύνης! αἱ πέτραι ἐσχίσθησαν, καὶ οὗτοι ἀναισθητοῦσι· τὰ ἄψυχα κλονεῖται, καὶ οἱ ἔμψυχοι ἀπιστοῦσι· τὸ καταπέτασμα τοῦ ναοῦ ῥήγνυται, ἵνα λοιπὸν ἡ ἐρήμωσις αὐτῶν δειχθῇ. Ἐσχίσθη γὰρ τὸ καταπέτασμα, καὶ ἐγυμνώθη τὰ ἐν τῷ ναῷ διὰ τὸν εἰπόντα Χριστόν· Ἰδοὺ ἀφίεται ὁ οἶκος ὑμῶν ἔρημος. Καὶ γὰρ καὶ ἠρήμωται μετὰ τὴν χριστοκτονίαν πάντα τὰ τῶν Ἰουδαίων σεμνὰ, καὶ οἱ παραμένοντες τῇ πόλει καὶ τῷ ἱερῷ ἄγγελοι μετέβησαν ἐκεῖθεν, καὶ ἦλθον εἰς τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν. Πολλὰ δὲ σώματα τῶν κεκοιμημένων ἁγίων συνηγέρθη Χριστῷ, ἵνα μάθωμεν ἡμεῖς, ὅτι Χριστὸς ἀποθανὼν μόνος οὐκ ἀνίσταται, ἀλλὰ Πάντας τοὺς εἰς αὐτὸν πιστεύοντας ἐκ νεκρῶν ἀνίστησιν.

Αὕτη, ὡς ἐν κεφαλαίῳ, ἐστὶν ἡ σεμνὴ τοῦ Πάσχα ἑορτὴ, καὶ ταῦτα Χριστιανῶν τὰ μυστήρια, περὶ ἀναστάσεως νεκρῶν καὶ ζωῆς αἰωνίου