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the grace of the Spirit upon him into the font, and makes the one who has prostituted himself a son of God, and brings to life the one who was dead in sins. This is, But the Spirit gives life. But how does it give life? By not demanding an account of transgressions, according to the word of the prophet: I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities I will remember no more. Ask the Jew again, where did this happen in the law? But he would not be able to show it. For indeed, the one who gathered sticks was stoned, and the fornicating woman was burned, and Moses for one sin fell short of the promised land; but under grace, those who have done countless terrible things, receiving baptism, are brought to life, and no penalty is demanded of them for their transgressions. Wherefore Paul also said: Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor the effeminate, nor homosexuals, not adulterers, not thieves, not the greedy, not drunkards, not revilers, not swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and in the Spirit of our God. Do you see how the prophetic word shines, that I will be merciful to their unrighteousness? how the apostolic word flashes, that The Spirit gives life? Do you want to learn the other thing also, the apostle Paul saying, how in a brief moment of time he went around the whole world? Hear him saying: So that from Jerusalem and as far as Illyricum I have fulfilled the Gospel; and again: But now, having no more place in these regions, and having a longing to see you, as, if I go to Spain, I hope to see you, if first I may be filled in part with your company. If one apostle in a brief moment of time ran through the greater part of the world, consider how others also enmeshed it all in their net. Therefore he also said: Of the Gospel which was preached in all creation under heaven; interpreting that prophetic word, Because all shall know me, from the least to the greatest of them. But that Christ gave the law is clear from these things; and that, being slaughtered for the law, they poured out their blood for the lawgiver, this too is plain; and so I now exhort your love to come to the festival with much eagerness; like bees leap out from the hives to the wounds of the martyrs, and embrace their tortures, shrinking not at all from the length of the road. For if the old man Eleazar dared to face fire, and the mother of those blessed ones in extreme old age endured so many pains; what defense, what excuse could you have, not even crossing a few stades for the sake of watching those contests? ...

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αὐτὸν ἡ τοῦ Πνεύματος χάρις εἰς τὴν κολυμβήθραν, καὶ τὸν ἡταιρηκότα υἱὸν Θεοῦ κατασκευάζει, καὶ τὸν νεκρωθέντα ταῖς ἁμαρτίαις ζωογονεῖ. Τοῦτό ἐστι, Τὸ δὲ πνεῦμα ζωοποιεῖ. Πῶς δὲ ζωοποιεῖ; Οὐκ ἀπαιτῶν εὐθύνας τῶν πλημμελημάτων κατὰ τὸ τοῦ προφήτου· Ἵλεως ἔσομαι ταῖς ἀδικίαις αὐτῶν, καὶ τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν αὐτῶν καὶ τῶν ἀνομιῶν αὐτῶν οὐ μὴ μνησθῶ ἔτι. Ἐρώτησον πάλιν τὸν Ἰουδαῖον, ποῦ τοῦτο γέγονεν ἐν τῷ νόμῳ; Ἀλλ' οὐκ ἂν ἔχοι δεῖξαι. Καὶ γὰρ καὶ ὁ τὰ ξύλα συλλέξας ἐλιθάζετο, καὶ ἡ πορνεύουσα κατεκαίετο, καὶ Μωϋσῆς διὰ μίαν ἁμαρτίαν τῆς γῆς τῆς ἐπαγγελίας ἐξέπεσεν· ἐπὶ δὲ τῆς χάριτος οἱ μυρία ἐργασάμενοι δεινὰ, τοῦ βαπτίσματος ἀπολαύοντες ζωογονοῦνται, καὶ οὐδεμίαν ἀπαιτοῦνται δίκην τῶν πλημμελημάτων. ∆ιὸ καὶ ὁ Παῦλος ἔλεγε· Μὴ πλανᾶσθε· οὔτε πόρνοι, οὔτε μαλακοὶ, οὔτε ἀρσενοκοῖται, οὐ μοιχοὶ, οὐ κλέπται, οὐ πλεονέκται, οὐ μέθυσοι, οὐ λοίδοροι, οὐχ ἅρπαγες βασιλείαν Θεοῦ κληρονομήσουσι. Καὶ ταῦτά τινες ἦτε· ἀλλ' ἀπελούσασθε, ἀλλ' ἡγιάσθητε, ἀλλ' ἐδικαιώθητε ἐν τῷ ὀνόματι τοῦ Κυρίου Ἰησοῦ, καὶ ἐν τῷ πνεύματι τοῦ Θεοῦ ἡμῶν. Εἶδες πῶς λάμπει τὸ προφητικὸν, ὅτι Ἵλεως ἔσομαι ταῖς ἀδικίαις αὐτῶν; πῶς ἀστράπτει τὸ ἀποστολικὸν, ὅτι Τὸ πνεῦμα ζωοποιεῖ; Βούλει μαθεῖν καὶ τὸ ἕτερον, τὸν ἀπόστολον Παῦλον λέγοντα, πῶς ἐν βραχείᾳ χρόνου ῥοπῇ τὴν οἰκουμένην περιῆλθεν ἅπασαν; ἄκουσον αὐτοῦ λέγοντος· Ὥστε με ἀπὸ Ἱερουσαλὴμ καὶ μέχρι τοῦ Ἰλλυρικοῦ πεπληρωκέναι τὸ Εὐαγγέλιον· καὶ πάλιν· Νυνὶ δὲ μηκέτι τόπον ἔχων ἐν τοῖς κλίμασι τούτοις, ἐπιποθίαν δὲ ἔχων τοῦ ἰδεῖν ὑμᾶς, ὡς, ἐὰν πορεύσωμαι εἰς τὴν Ἱσπανίαν, ἐλπίζω θεάσασθαι ὑμᾶς, ἐὰν ὑμῶν πρῶτον ἀπὸ μέρους ἐμπλησθῶ. Εἰ δὲ εἷς ἀπόστολος ἐν βραχείᾳ καιροῦ ῥοπῇ τὸ πλέον τῆς οἰκουμένης διέδραμεν, ἐννόησον πῶς καὶ ἄλλοι ἅπασαν αὐτὴν ἐσαγήνευσαν. ∆ιὸ καὶ ἔλεγε· Τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου τοῦ κηρυχθέντος ἐν πάσῃ τῇ κτίσει τῇ ὑπὸ τὸν οὐρανόν· τὸ προφητικὸν ἐκεῖνο ἑρμηνεύων, Ὅτι πάντες εἰδήσουσί με ἀπὸ μικροῦ ἕως μεγάλου αὐτῶν. Ἀλλ' ὅτι μὲν τὸν νόμον ὁ Χριστὸς ἔδωκεν, ἀπὸ τούτων δῆλον· καὶ ὅτι σφαγέντες ὑπὲρ τοῦ νόμου, ὑπὲρ τοῦ νομοθέτου τὸ αἷμα ἐξέχεον καὶ τοῦτο σαφές· παρακαλῶ δὲ λοιπὸν τὴν ὑμετέραν ἀγάπην μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς προθυμίας εἰς τὴν πανήγυριν ἀπαντῆσαι· καθάπερ μέλισσαι τῶν σίμβλων ἐκπηδήσατε ἐπὶ τὰ τραύματα τῶν μαρτύρων, καὶ περιπτύξασθε αὐτῶν τὰς βασάνους, μηδὲν πρὸς τὸ τῆς ὁδοῦ κατοκνήσαντες μῆκος. Εἰ γὰρ γέρων ὁ Ἐλεάζαρος πυρὸς κατετόλμησε, καὶ ἡ μήτηρ τῶν μακαρίων ἐκείνων ἐν ἐσχάτῳ γήρᾳ τοσαύτας ὑπέμεινεν ὀδύνας· ποίαν ἂν σχοίητε ἀπολογίαν, ποίαν συγγνώμην, μηδὲ ὀλίγους σταδίους διαπερῶντες ὑπὲρ τῆς θεωρίας τῶν παλαισμάτων ἐκείνων; ...