7

to give thanks to you for the judgments of your righteousness. A man, a king, being in so many cares, entrusted with the rule of peoples and cities and nations, caring for peace, putting an end to wars, seeing an unspeakable crowd of affairs always surrounding him, not even having a little moment to catch his breath, he added not only the days, but also the nights to his prayers. But if the king, living in such luxury, having so many cares, surrounded by so many affairs, was not even quiet at night, but continued making his prayers more diligently than the monks sitting in the mountains, what pardon, tell me, shall we obtain, we who live in great security, and have chosen a private and quiet life, not only sleeping all the nights, but not even in the day performing the customary prayers with fitting vigilance? A great weapon is prayer, a great adornment is prayer, and a security and a harbor, and a treasure of good things, and an inviolable wealth. For when we entreat men, we need an expenditure of money, and servile flattery, and much running about and trouble. For it is often not possible to speak directly to the lords themselves to grant the favor, but it is necessary first to serve their deacons and stewards and managers with money, and with words, and in every way, and then through them to be able to receive the request; but with God it is not so; nor does He assent to the grace when besought through others as He does when we ourselves entreat. And here, it is possible to profit both by receiving and by not receiving; but with men we are often harmed in either case.

Since, therefore, the profit is greater and the ease is greater for those who approach God, let us not despise prayer. For then He will be more reconciled to you, then He will more give you what you ask, when you entreat through yourself, when 55.527 you offer a pure mind, when a sober reasoning, when you do not ask carelessly, as many do, whose tongue indeed says the words of the prayer, but their soul wanders about many places of the house, of the marketplace, of the roads; this is entirely the device of the devil. For since he knows that at that time we can obtain forgiveness of sins, wishing to block up for us the harbor of prayer, he rises up at that very moment, driving our mind from what is being said, so that we depart having suffered loss rather than having gained. Knowing these things, therefore, O man, when you approach God, consider to whom you are approaching; and the trustworthiness of Him who is about to give you grace is sufficient for your sobriety. Look up to heaven, and think to whom your speech is directed. For if someone speaking with a man who has risen a little in human honors, even if he is the most careless of all, he certainly rouses himself, and exhorts his soul to be sober; how much more, if we understand that we are speaking with the Master of angels, shall we receive from this a sufficient reason for paying attention to ourselves. But if it is necessary to mention another meth 55.528 od, through which we shall be able to escape this carelessness, I would say this: Often, having completed the prayer, having heard nothing of what we have said, we have gone away. If, therefore, we perceive this, let us immediately take it up again; and if we suffer the same thing again, let us say it a third and a fourth time, and let us not cease praying before we say it all with a sober mind. If the devil perceives that we do not stop before we say it with earnestness and a sober mind, he who lies in wait will then depart, knowing that his plot will gain him nothing more than to compel us to take up the same prayer many times.

Many wounds we receive during the day, beloved, from our own people, from strangers, in the marketplace, in the house, from public affairs, from private ones, from neighbors, from friends. Let us apply medicines for all those wounds at the time of prayer. For God is able, if with a sober mind and

7

ἐξομολογεῖσθαί σοι ἐπὶ τὰ κρίματα τῆς δικαιοσύνης σου. Ἄνθρωπος βασιλεὺς ἐν φροντίσι τοσαύταις ὢν, δήμων καὶ πόλεων καὶ ἐθνῶν ἀρχὴν ἐγκεχειρισμένος, εἰρή νης φροντίζων, πολέμους καταλύων, πραγμάτων ἄφα τον ὄχλον ὁρῶν περὶ αὐτὸν ἀεὶ περιεστῶτα, οὐδὲ μι κρὸν ἀναπνεῦσαι ἔχων, οὐ μόνον τὰς ἡμέρας, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰς νύκτας προσετίθει ταῖς εὐχαῖς. Εἰ δὲ ὁ βασι λεὺς ὁ ἐν τοσαύτῃ τρυφῇ ζῶν, ὁ τοσαύτας ἔχων φρον τίδας, ὁ τοσούτοις πράγμασι περικυκλούμενος, οὐδὲ τὴν νύκτα ἠρέμει, ἀλλὰ τῶν ἐν ὄρεσι καθημένων μο ναχῶν ἀκριβέστερον τὰς εὐχὰς ποιούμενος διετέλει, ποίας, εἰπέ μοι, τευξόμεθα συγγνώμης ἡμεῖς, ἐν ἀδείᾳ μὲν ζῶντες πολλῇ, καὶ τὸν ἰδιωτικὸν καὶ ἀπράγμονα ἐπανῃρημένοι βίον, οὐ μόνον δὲ τὰς νύκτας καθεύ δοντες ἁπάσας, ἀλλ' οὐδὲ ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ μετὰ τῆς προσ ηκούσης ἀγρυπνίας τὰς νενομισμένας ἐπιτελοῦντες εὐχάς; Μέγα ὅπλον προσευχὴ, μέγας κόσμος εὐχὴ, καὶ ἀσφάλεια καὶ λιμὴν, καὶ θησαυρὸς ἀγαθῶν, καὶ ἄσυλος πλοῦτος. Ἀνθρώπων μὲν οὖν δεόμενοι, καὶ δαπάνης χρημάτων δεόμεθα, καὶ κολακείας δουλο πρεποῦς, καὶ πολλῆς περιόδου καὶ πραγματείας. Οὐ γὰρ ἐξ εὐθείας αὐτοῖς τοῖς κυρίοις δοῦναι τὴν χάριν ἔνι διαλεχθῆναι πολλάκις, ἀλλ' ἀνάγκη πρότερον δια κόνους καὶ οἰκονόμους αὐτῶν, καὶ ἐπιτρόπους, καὶ χρήμασι, καὶ ῥήμασι, καὶ παντὶ θεραπεῦσαι τρόπῳ, καὶ τότε δι' ἐκείνων δυνηθῆναι τὴν αἴτησιν λαβεῖν· ἐπὶ δὲ τοῦ Θεοῦ οὐκ ἔστιν οὕτως· οὐδὲ οὕτω δι' ἑτέ ρων παρακαλούμενος, ὡς δι' ἡμῶν αὐτῶν δεομένων, ἐπινεύει τῇ χάριτι. Καὶ ἐνταῦθα μὲν καὶ λαμβάνοντα, καὶ μὴ λαμβάνοντα ἔστι κερδαίνειν· ἐπὶ δὲ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐν ἑκατέρῳ πολλάκις ἐβλάβημεν.

Ἐπεὶ οὖν μεῖζον τὸ κέρδος καὶ μείζων ἡ εὐκολία τοῖς τῷ Θεῷ προσιοῦσι, μὴ καταφρονῶμεν εὐχῆς. Τότε γάρ σοι μᾶλλον καταλλαγήσεται, τότε σοι μᾶλλον δίδωσιν ὅπερ αἰτεῖς, ὅταν σὺ διὰ σεαυτοῦ παρακαλῇς, ὅταν 55.527 καθαρὰν παρέχῃς διάνοιαν, ὅταν νήφοντα λογισμὸν, ὅταν μὴ παρέργως αἰτῇς, ὅπερ ποιοῦσι πολλοὶ, καὶ ἡ γλῶττα μὲν αὐτοῖς λέγει τὰ ῥήματα τῆς εὐχῆς, ἡ δὲ ψυχὴ πολλαχοῦ τῆς οἰκίας, τῆς ἀγορᾶς, τῶν ὁδῶν περιέρχεται· τοῦτο ὅλον τοῦ διαβόλου τὸ μηχάνημα. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ οἶδεν ὅτι κατ' ἐκεῖνον τὸν καιρὸν δυνάμεθα ἀφέσεως τυχεῖν ἁμαρτιῶν, βουλόμενος ἡμῖν τὸν τῆς εὐχῆς προσχῶσαι λιμένα, κατ' αὐτὸν ἀνίσταται, ἐκκρούων ἡμῶν τὴν διάνοιαν τῶν λεγομένων, ὥστε ζημιωθέντας μᾶλλον ἢ κερδάναντας ἀπελθεῖν. Ταῦτα οὖν εἰδὼς, ἄνθρωπε, ὅταν προσέρχῃ τῷ Θεῷ, ἐννόησον τίνι προσέρχῃ· καὶ ἀρκεῖ σοι εἰς νῆψιν τὸ ἀξιόπιστον τοῦ μέλλοντός σοι διδόναι τὴν χάριν. Ἀνάβλεψον εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν, καὶ διανοοῦ πρὸς τίνα σοι ὁ λόγος ἐστίν. Εἰ γὰρ ἀνθρώπῳ τις διαλεγόμενος ὀλίγον ἀναβεβηκότι ταῖς ἀνθρωπίναις τιμαῖς, κἂν ἁπάντων ῥᾳθυμότερος ᾖ, πάντως ἑαυτὸν διανίστησι, καὶ νήφειν παρακελεύεται τῇ ψυχῇ· πολλῷ μᾶλλον ἂν νοήσωμεν ἡμεῖς, ὅτι τῷ τῶν ἀγγέλων ∆εσπότῃ διαλεγόμεθα, ἱκανὴν εἰς τὸ προσέχειν ἑαυτοῖς ὑπόθεσιν ἐκ τούτου ληψόμεθα. Εἰ δὲ δεῖ τινα καὶ ἑτέραν μέθ 55.528 οδον εἰπεῖν, δι' ἧς δυνησόμεθα τὴν ῥᾳθυμίαν ἐκφυγεῖν ταύτην, ἐκεῖνο ἂν εἴποιμι· Πολλάκις πληρώσαντες τὴν εὐχὴν, μηδὲν ἀκούσαντες ὧν εἰρήκαμεν, ἀπήλθομεν. Ἂν οὖν ἐννοήσωμεν τοῦτο, εὐθέως πάλιν αὐτὴν ἀναλάβωμεν· κἂν τὸ αὐτὸ πάθωμεν πάλιν, καὶ τρίτον καὶ τέταρτον αὐτὴν εἴπωμεν, καὶ μὴ πρότερον ἀποστῶμεν εὐχόμενοι, ἕως ἂν ἅπασαν αὐτὴν μετὰ διανοίας νηφούσης εἴπωμεν. Ἂν αἴσθηται ὁ διάβολος, ὅτι οὐ πρότερον ἀφιστάμεθα, ἕως ἂν μετὰ σπουδῆς αὐτὴν καὶ διανοίας νηφούσης εἴπωμεν, ἀποστήσεται λοιπὸν ὁ ἐνεδρεύων, εἰδὼς ὅτι οὐδὲν ἔσται πλέον αὐτῷ τῆς ἐπιβουλῆς, ἢ τὸ πολλάκις ἀναγκάζειν τὴν αὐτὴν ἡμᾶς ἀναλαμβάνειν εὐχήν.

Πολλὰ μεθ' ἡμέραν, ἀγαπητοὶ, λαμβάνομεν τραύματα ἐκ τῶν οἰκείων, ἐκ τῶν ἀλλοτρίων, ἐν ἀγορᾷ, ἐν οἰκίᾳ, ἀπὸ τῶν δημοσίων πραγμάτων, ἀπὸ τῶν ἰδιωτικῶν, ἀπὸ τῶν γειτόνων, ἀπὸ τῶν φίλων. Πάντων ἐκείνων τῶν τραυμάτων φάρμακα ἐπιθῶμεν τῷ καιρῷ τῆς εὐχῆς. ∆υνατὸς γὰρ ὁ Θεὸς, εἰ μετὰ νηφούσης διανοίας καὶ