Your heavenly Father is merciful; and again he says: If 34.837 you love me, you will keep my commandments. And again: Strive; for the violent take the kingdom of heaven by force; and this: Struggle to enter through the narrow gate. Let him always have before his eyes the Lord's humility and way of life and conduct, like an example in every unforgetting memory; and with all his strength let him force himself to persevere in prayers, praying and believing always; that the Lord may come and dwell in him and prepare and strengthen him in all his commandments, and that his soul may become a dwelling place of Jesus Christ; and thus what he now does with force and against the will of his heart, accustoming himself always to the good and to remember the Lord always, and to expect him always in much goodness and love. And when the Lord sees such a purpose and good zeal in him, how he always forces himself to the remembrance of him, and always to the good, and to humility, and meekness and love; and compels his unwilling heart, and leads himself, with all his strength, with force, he shows his mercy with him; and redeems him from his enemies, and from the sin dwelling within? filling him with the Holy Spirit, and so, for the rest, without force and toil he always performs all the commandments of the Lord in truth; or rather, the Lord performs his own commandments in him, and the fruits of the Spirit, when he bears fruit purely. But it is necessary that one who has first approached the Lord, thus force himself to the good, even against the will of his heart, always expecting his mercy in unwavering faith, and to force oneself to be compassionate and to have a merciful heart, to force oneself to be despised, to be long-suffering, when scorned or dishonored, not to be indignant; according to what is said: Do not avenge yourselves, beloved; and to force oneself to prayer, not yet having the prayer of the Spirit. And so God, seeing him striving in this way, and forcibly leading himself to the good against the will of his heart, gives him the true prayer of Christ, gives him bowels of compassion, true kindness, and, in a word, keeps for him the fruit of the Spirit. But if someone forces himself only to prayer, not having prayer, in order to receive the prayer of grace, and does not force himself to humility, and love and the other commandments of the Lord, sometimes the prayer of grace is given to him, and in rest and gladness partially according to his request, but in his ways he is the same as he was before. For he does not have meekness, because he did not seek it with toil, and did not prepare himself to become so. He does not have humility, since he did not ask for it, and did not force himself to this; he does not have love for all, since concerning this he had no care and struggle in the request of his prayer; for it is necessary for each one, just as he forces and compels himself to prayer against the will of his 34.840 heart; so to love, to meekness, and to all patience and long-suffering with joy, as it is written; so to force oneself to be scorned, and to consider oneself worse and last of all, as not being useful, not to speak; but to meditate always on the words of the Lord and to speak with mouth and heart; so as not to be angry, according to what is said: Let all bitterness, and wrath, and clamor be taken away from you, with all malice; So that the Lord, seeing his purpose, may give him all these things without toil and without force, which before he was only able to keep with force, because of the sin dwelling in him; and all these practices of virtue become for him as if nature; for then the Lord, coming and being in him, himself performs his own commandments in him without toil, filling him with the fruits of the Spirit.

14. But if someone forces himself to prayer, until he receives some gift from God, but to these, that is, to humility, to love, to meekness, and to the

Πατὴρ ὑμῶν ὁ οὐράνιος οἰκτίρμων ἐστί· καὶ πάλιν φησίν· Ἐὰν 34.837 ἀγαπᾶτέ με, τὰς ἐντολάς μου τηρήσετε. Καὶ πάλιν· Βιάζεσθε· βιασταὶ γὰρ ἁρπάζουσι τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν· καὶ τό· Ἀγωνίζεσθε εἰσελθεῖν διὰ τῆς στενῆς πύλης. Ἀεὶ δὲ τὴν τοῦ Κυρίου ταπείνωσιν καὶ πολιτείαν καὶ ἀναστροφὴν ἐχέτω πρὸ ὀφθαλμῶν, ὥσπερ ὑπογραμμὸν ἐν πάσῃ μνήμῃ ἀληθαργήτῳ· καὶ ὅση δύναμις βιαζέσθω ταῖς εὐχαῖς προσκαρτερεῖ, διὰ παντὸς δεόμενος καὶ πιστεύων· ἵνα ἐλθὼν ὁ Κύριος ἐνοικήσῃ ἐν αὐτῷ καὶ καταρτίσῃ καὶ δυναμώσῃ αὐτὸν ἐν ταῖς ἐντολαῖς πάσαις αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἵνα ἡ ψυχὴ αὐτοῦ γένηται οἰκητήριον Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ· καὶ οὕτως ἃ νῦν μετὰ βίας καὶ μὴ θελούσης τῆς καρδίας ποιεῖ, ἐθίζειν ἑαυτὸν διὰ παντὸς εἰς τὸ ἀγαθὸν καὶ τοῦ Κυρίου ἀεὶ μνημονεύειν, καὶ προσδοκᾷν αὐτὸν διὰ παντὸς ἐν πολλῇ ἀγαθότητι καὶ ἀγάπῃ. Τό τε θεωρῶν ὁ Κύριος τὴν τοιαύτην αὐτοῦ προαίρεσιν καὶ τὴν ἀγαθὴν σπουδὴν, πῶς βιάζει ἑαυτὸν πάντοτε εἰς τὴν μνήμην αὐτοῦ, καὶ εἰς τὸ ἀγαθὸν ἀεὶ, καὶ εἰς τὴν ταπεινοφροσύνην, καὶ πραότητα καὶ ἀγάπην· καὶ μὴ θέλουσαν τὴν καρδίαν ἄγχει, καὶ ἄγει, ὅση δύναμις, ἑαυτὸν μετὰ βίας, ποιεῖ μετ' αὐτοῦ τὸ ἔλεος αὐτοῦ· καὶ λυτροῦται αὐτὸν ἀπὸ τῶν ἐχθρῶν αὐτοῦ, καὶ τῆς ἐνοικούσης ἁμαρτίας; Πνεύματος ἁγίου ἐμπιπλῶν αὐτὸν, καὶ οὕτως λοιπὸν ἄνευ βίας καὶ καμάτου πάσας ποιεῖ πάντοτε τὰς ἐντολὰς τοῦ Κυρίου ἐξ ἀληθείας· μᾶλλον δὲ ὁ Κύριος ποιεῖ ἐν αὐτῷ τὰς ἰδίας αὐτοῦ ἐντολὰς, καὶ τοὺς καρποὺς τοῦ Πνεύματος, ὅτε καρποφορεῖ καθαρῶς. Χρὴ δὲ πρότερον προσελθόντα τινὰ τῷ Κυρίῳ, οὕτως βιάζειν καὶ αὐτὸν εἰς τὸ ἀγαθὸν, καὶ μὴ θελούσης τῆς καρδίας, προσδοκῶντα διὰ παντὸς ἐν πίστει ἀδιστάκτῳ τὸ ἔλεος αὐτοῦ, καὶ βιάζεσθαι ἑαυτὸν εἰς τὸ οἰκτείρειν καὶ ἐλεήμονα ἔχειν καρδίαν, βιάζεσθαι εἰς τὸ καταφρονεῖσθαι, εἰς τὸ μακροθυμεῖν, ἐξουθενούμενον, ἢ ἀτιμαζόμενον μὴ ἀγανακτεῖν· κατὰ τὸ εἰρημένον· Μὴ ἑαυτοὺς ἐκδικοῦντες, ἀγαπητοί· βιάζεσθαί τε ἑαυτὸν εἰς τὴν εὐχὴν, μήπω ἔχοντα εὐχὴν Πνεύματος. Καὶ οὕτως ὁ Θεὸς θεωρῶν τὸν οὕτως ἀγωνιζόμενον, καὶ βίᾳ ἑαυτὸν ἄγοντα εἰς τὸ ἀγαθὸν, καὶ μὴ θελούσης τῆς καρδίας, δίδωσιν εὐχὴν ἀληθινὴν Χριστοῦ, δίδωσι σπλάγχνα οἰκτιρμῶν, χρηστότητα ἀληθινὴν, καὶ ἁπαξαπλῶς τηρεῖ αὐτῷ τὸν καρπὸν τοῦ Πνεύματος. Εἰ δέ τις μόνον εἰς τὴν εὐχὴν βιάζεται ἑαυτὸν, μὴ ἔχων εὐχὴν, ἵνα σχῇ εὐχὴν χάριτος, καὶ εἰς τὴν ταπεινοφροσύνην, καὶ ἀγάπην καὶ τὰς λοιπὰς ἐντολὰς τοῦ Κυρίου ἑαυτὸν, οὐ βιάζεται, ἐνίοτε δίδοται αὐτῷ εὐχὴ χάριτος, καὶ ἐν ἀναπαύσει καὶ εὐφροσύνῃ μερικῶς κατὰ τὸ αἴτημα αὐτοῦ, τοῖς δὲ τρόποις ὅμοιός ἐστιν ᾧ ἦν πρότερον ὅμοιος. Οὐκ ἔχει γὰρ πραότητα, ὅτι οὐκ ἐζήτησεν ἐμπόνως, καὶ οὐ προηυτρέπισεν ἑαυτὸν οὕτω γενέσθαι. Οὐκ ἔχει ταπεινοφροσύνην, ἐπειδὴ οὐκ ᾔτησε, καὶ ἑαυτὸν ἐβιάσατο εἰς τοῦτο· οὐκ ἔχει ἀγάπην πρὸς πάντας, ἐπεὶ περὶ τούτου μέριμναν καὶ ἀγῶνα οὐκ ἔσχεν ἐν τῇ αἰτήσει τῆς προσευχῆς· χρὴ γὰρ ἕκαστον, ὥσπερ εἰς τὴν εὐχὴν βιάζεται ἑαυτὸν καὶ ἄγχει, καὶ μὴ θελούσης 34.840 τῆς καρδίας· οὕτως εἰς τὴν ἀγάπην, εἰς τὴν πραότητα, καὶ εἰς πᾶσαν ὑπομονὴν καὶ μακροθυμίαν μετὰ χαρᾶς, κατὰ τὸ γεγραμμένον· οὕτω βιάζεσθαι ἑαυτὸν εἰς τὸ ἐξουθενεῖσθαι, καὶ χείρω καὶ ἔσχατον ἑαυτὸν λογίζεσθαι πάντων, ὡς τὸ μὴ ὂν χρήσιμον, μὴ ὁμιλεῖν· ἀλλὰ τὰ τοῦ Κυρίου μελετᾷν ἀεὶ λόγια καὶ λαλεῖν στόματι καὶ καρδίᾳ· οὕτως εἰς τὸ μὴ θυμοῦσθαι κατὰ τὸ εἰρημένον· Πᾶσα πικρία, καὶ ὀργὴ, καὶ κραυγὴ ἀρθήτω ἀφ' ὑμῶν, σὺν πάσῃ κακίᾳ· Ἵνα οὕτως ὁ Κύριος ἰδὼν αὐτοῦ τὴν προαίρεσιν δώσῃ αὐτῷ ταῦτα πάντα ἀκόπως καὶ ἀβιάστως, ἅπερ πρὶν οὕτω μετὰ βίας φυλάξαι ἠδύνατο, διὰ τὴν οἰκοῦσαν ἐν αὐτῷ ἁμαρτίαν· καὶ γίνεται αὐτῷ ταῦτα πάντα τῆς ἀρετῆς ἐπιτηδεύματα ὥσπερ φύσις· τὸ λοιπὸν γὰρ ἐλθὼν ὁ Κύριος, ἐλθὼν καὶ γενόμενος ἐν αὐτῷ, καὶ αὐτὸς ποιεῖ ἐν αὐτῷ τὰς ἰδίας ἐντολὰς ἄνευ καμάτου, πληρῶν αὐτὸν τοῖς καρποῖς τοῦ Πνεύματος.

Ι∆ʹ. Εἰ δέ τις εἰς εὐχὴν βιάζεται ἑαυτὸν, ἕως οὗ λάβῃ τι χάρισμα παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ, εἰς ταῦτα δὲ ἤγουν εἰς ταπεινοφροσύνην, εἰς ἀγάπην, εἰς πραότητα, καὶ εἰς τὰς