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of the things seen and heard may remain in the soul unto ruin and destruction, and so that we may be able to persevere in prayer, we first separate ourselves in dwelling. For in this way we may overcome the former habit, in which we lived alienated from the commandments of Christ (and this is no small contest, to overcome one’s own habit; for a habit confirmed over a long time takes on the strength of nature), and we shall be able to wipe away the stains from sin by both industrious prayer and by persistent meditation on the will of God; it is impossible to attain to which meditation and prayer amidst the many things which distract the soul, and create worldly cares. And the saying, "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself," when could anyone living in these things be able to fulfill it? For we must, having denied ourselves and taken up the cross of Christ, thus follow him. And denial of self is the complete forgetfulness of things past, and the renunciation of one’s own will, which is most difficult for one living in an indifferent habit to achieve, not to say, that it is entirely unattainable. But also, mingling with such a life is an obstacle to taking up one’s cross and following Christ. For the preparation for death for Christ's sake, and the mortification of the members which are upon the earth, and being disposed in battle array towards every danger 31.928 that comes upon us for the name of Christ, and having no attachment to the present life, this is to take up one’s cross; to which we see great hindrances are born in us by the habit of the common life. And in addition to all the other many things, the soul, looking at the multitude of transgressors, first has no time to be aware of its own sins, and to be contrite through repentance for its faults; and in comparing itself with those who are worse it even acquires a certain fantasy of achievement; then by the noises and the cares, which the common life is wont to produce, being drawn away from the more worthy remembrance of God, it not only suffers the loss of exulting and rejoicing in God, and delighting in the Lord, and being sweetened by His words, so as to be able to say: "I remembered God, and was glad"; and, "How sweet are thy words to my throat, yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth"; but it is also accustomed to a complete contempt and forgetfulness of His judgments, than which it could suffer no greater or more destructive evil.

QUESTION 7. Concerning the need to live with those who are of one mind toward the goal of pleasing God; and that it is both difficult and dangerous to live as a solitary.

Since, therefore, the argument has fully convinced us that life with those who are contemptuous of the Lord’s commandments is dangerous, we consequently ask to learn whether he who has withdrawn from these ought to live alone by himself, or to live with like-minded brethren who have chosen the same goal of piety. RESPONSE. I understand that the life of many together is more useful in many respects. First, that for the needs of the body not one of us is self-sufficient for himself, but we need one another in providing for our necessities. For just as the foot has one power, but is in need of another, and without the cooperation of the other members finds its own action neither possible nor self-sufficient for its continuance, nor has it consolation for what is lacking; so also in the solitary life, both what we have becomes useless, and what is lacking is without consolation, since God the Creator ordained that we should need one another, as it is written, so that we may be joined to one another. And apart from this, the principle of the love of Christ does not permit each to look to his own interests. For "love," he says, "does not 31.929 seek its own." But the solitary life has one aim, the private interest of each

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τῶν ὁρωμένων καὶ ἀκουομένων ἐν απομείνωσι τῇ ψυχῇ εἰς ὄλεθρον καὶ ἀπώλειαν, καὶ ἵνα δυνηθῶμεν ἐπιμένειν τῇ προσευχῇ, ἀφιδιάζω μεν πρῶτον κατὰ τὴν οἴκησιν. Οὕτω γὰρ ἂν καὶ τοῦ προλαβόντος ἔθους περιγενοίμεθα, ἐν ᾧ ἀλλοτρίως ἐζήσαμεν τῶν ἐντολῶν τοῦ Χριστοῦ (οὐ μικρὸς δὲ οὗτος ἀγὼν, τῆς ἑαυτοῦ συνηθείας περιγενέσθαι· ἔθος γὰρ διὰ μακροῦ χρόνου βεβαιωθὲν φύσεως ἰσχὺν λαμβάνει), καὶ τοὺς ἐξ ἁμαρτίας δὲ σπίλους ἐκτρῖ ψαι δυνησόμεθα τῇ τε φιλοπόνῳ προσευχῇ καὶ τῇ ἐπιμόνῳ μελέτῃ τῶν τοῦ Θεοῦ θελημάτων· ἧς μελέτης καὶ προσευχῆς ἐν πολλοῖς τοῖς περιέλκουσι τὴν ψυχὴν, καὶ ἀσχολίας βιωτικὰς ἐμποιοῦσι, περι γενέσθαι ἀμήχανον. Καὶ τὸ, Εἴ τις θέλει ὀπίσω μου ἐλθεῖν, ἀπαρνησάσθω ἑαυτὸν, πότε ἄν τις ἐν τούτοις ὢν πληρῶσαι δυνηθείη; Χρὴ γὰρ ἡμᾶς, ἀπαρνησαμένους ἑαυτοὺς, καὶ ἄραντας τὸν σταυρὸν τοῦ Χριστοῦ, οὕτως ἀκολουθεῖν αὐτῷ. Ἄρνησις δέ ἐστιν ἑαυτοῦ ἡ παντελὴς τῶν παρελθόντων λήθη, καὶ ἡ τῶν θελημάτων ἑαυτοῦ ἀναχώρησις, ἣν ἐν τῇ ἀδιαφόρῳ συνηθείᾳ ζῶντα κατορθῶσαι δυσκολώτατον, ἵνα μὴ λέγω, ὅτι παντελῶς ἀνεπίδεκτον. Ἀλλὰ καὶ πρὸς τὸ ἆραι τὸν σταυρὸν ἑαυτοῦ καὶ ἀκολουθεῖν τῷ Χριστῷ ἐμπόδιόν ἐστιν ἡ πρὸς τὸν τοιοῦτον βίον ἐπι μιξία. Ἡ γὰρ ἑτοιμασία πρὸς τὸν ὑπὲρ Χρι στοῦ θάνατον, καὶ ἡ νέκρωσις τῶν μελῶν τῶν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, καὶ τὸ παρατεταγμένως πρὸς πάντα κίν 31.928 δυνον τὸν ὑπὲρ τοῦ ὀνόματος τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐπερχόμε νον ἡμῖν διακεῖσθαι, καὶ τὸ ἀπροσπαθῶς ἔχειν πρὸς τὴν παροῦσαν ζωὴν, τοῦτό ἐστιν ἆραι τὸν σταυ ρὸν ἑαυτοῦ· πρὸς ὃ μεγάλα ὁρῶμεν τὰ ἐμπόδια ὑπὸ τῆς τοῦ κοινοῦ βίου συνηθείας ἡμῖν ἐγγινόμενα. Καὶ πρὸς πᾶσι τοῖς ἄλλοις πολλοῖς οὖσιν, εἰς τὸ πλῆθος τῶν παρανομούντων ἀποβλέπουσα ψυχὴ, πρῶτον μὲν οὐκ ἄγει καιρὸν ἐπαισθάνεσθαι τῶν ἰδίων ἁμαρτημάτων, καὶ συντρῖψαι ἑαυτὴν διὰ τῆς μετανοίας ἐπὶ τοῖς πλημμελήμασιν· ἐν δὲ τῇ συγκρί σει τῶν χειρόνων καὶ κατορθώματός τινα φαντασίαν προσκτᾶται· εἶτα ὑπὸ τῶν θορύβων καὶ τῶν ἀσχο λιῶν, ἃς ὁ κοινὸς βίος πέφυκεν ἐμποιεῖν, τῆς ἀξιολο γωτέρας μνήμης τοῦ Θεοῦ ἀποσπωμένη, οὐ μόνον τὸ ἐναγαλλιᾶσθαι καὶ ἐνευφραίνεσθαι τῷ Θεῷ ζη μιοῦται, καὶ τὸ κατατρυφᾷν τοῦ Κυρίου, καὶ τὸ καταγλυκαίνεσθαι τοῖς ῥήμασιν αὐτοῦ, ὥστε δύνασθαι εἰπεῖν· Ἐμνήσθην τοῦ Θεοῦ, καὶ ηὐφράνθην· καὶ, Ὡς γλυκέα τῷ λάρυγγί μου τὰ λόγιά σου, ὑπὲρ μέλι τῷ στόματί μου· ἀλλὰ καὶ εἰς καταφρό νησιν καὶ λήθην τῶν κριμάτων αὐτοῦ παντελῆ συνεθίζεται, οὗ μεῖζον κακὸν οὐδὲν ἂν οὐδὲ ὀλεθριώτερον πάθοι.

ΕΡΩΤΗΣΙΣ Ζʹ. Περὶ τοῦ δεῖν τοῖς ὁμόφροσι πρὸς τὸν σκοπὸν τῆς πρὸς Θεὸν

εὐαρεστήσεως συζῇν· καὶ ὅτι δύσκο λον ὁμοῦ καὶ ἐπικίνδυνον τὸ μονάζειν. Ἐπεὶ οὖν ἐπληροφόρησεν ἡμᾶς ὁ λόγος, ἐπικίν δυνον εἶναι τὴν μετὰ τῶν καταφρονητικῶς ἐχόντων περὶ τὰς ἐντολὰς τοῦ Κυρίου ζωὴν, ἀκολούθως μα θεῖν ἀξιοῦμεν, εἰ χρὴ τὸν ἀναχωρήσαντα τούτων ἰδιάζειν καθ' ἑαυτὸν, ἢ ὁμόφροσιν ἀδελφοῖς καὶ τὸν αὐτὸν σκοπὸν τῆς εὐσεβείας προελομένοις συζῇν. ΑΠΟΚΡΙΣΙΣ. Πρὸς πολλὰ χρησιμωτέραν καταμανθάνω τὴν ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ τῶν πλειόνων διαγωγήν. Πρῶτον μὲν, ὅτι οὐδὲ πρὸς τὰς τοῦ σώματος χρείας ἕκαστος ἡμῶν ἑαυτῷ αὐτάρκης, ἀλλ' ἐν τῷ πορισμῷ τῶν ἀναγκαίων ἀλλήλων χρῄζομεν. Ὥσπερ γὰρ ὁ ποῦς τὴν μὲν ἔχει δύναμιν, τῆς δὲ ἐπιδεής ἐστι, καὶ ἄνευ τῆς τῶν λοι πῶν μελῶν συλλήψεως οὔτε τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ἐνέργειαν δυνατὴν ἢ αὐτάρκη ἑαυτῷ πρὸς διαμονὴν εὑρίσκει, οὔτε παραμυθίαν ἔχει τοῦ λείποντος· οὕτω καὶ ἐν τῇ μονήρει ζωῇ καὶ τὸ παρὸν ἡμῖν ἄχρηστον γίνεται, καὶ τὸ ἐλλεῖπον ἀπαραμύθητον, τοῦ δημιουργοῦ Θεοῦ ὁρίσαντος χρῄζειν ἡμᾶς ἀλλήλων, καθὼς γέγραπται, ἵνα καὶ συναπτώμεθα ἀλλήλοις. Ἄνευ δὲ τούτου καὶ ὁ τῆς ἀγάπης τοῦ Χριστοῦ λόγος οὐκ ἐπιτρέπει τὸ ἴδιον σκοπεῖν ἕκαστον. Ἡ ἀγάπη γὰρ, φησὶν, οὐ 31.929 ζητεῖ τὰ ἑαυτῆς. Ὁ δὲ ἀφιδιαστικὸς βίος ἕνα σκοπὸν ἔχει, τὴν οἰκείαν ἑκάστου