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Since Gregory of Nyssa in his own writings seems to those who do not understand the depth of his lofty contemplation to hint in many places at restoration, I ask you to say what you know about this.

ANSWER The Church knows three restorations: one, that of each person according to the principle of virtue, in which he is restored by fulfilling the principle of virtue that pertains to him; a second, that of the whole of nature in the resurrection, the restoration to incorruptibility and immortality; and a third, which Gregory of Nyssa especially uses in his own discourses, is this: the restoration again of the soul’s powers that have succumbed to sin to that state for which they were created. For just as the whole of nature must in the resurrection receive the incorruptibility of the flesh in the time that is hoped for, so also the soul's powers that have been diverted must, over the extension of the ages, cast off the memories of wickedness impressed upon it and, having passed through all the ages and not finding a place to rest, come to God, who has no limit, and thus, by knowledge and not by participation in good things, receive its powers and be restored to its ancient state and the Creator be shown to be without blame for sin.

QUESTION 20 What does the story concerning Bel mean, and who is Daniel and King Darius, who recognizes the footprints of those who entered as being of men and women and children? 14Α_040 ANSWER Every person who is in the ‘confusion’ of life—for this is what Babylon is interpreted to mean—makes his own soul a temple to Bel, that is, to the devil. In which, if Daniel should be present, that is, the law of God—for Daniel is interpreted as ‘judgment of God’—he teaches Darius, that is, the kingly mind, that the footprints of those walking about in the temple, that is, of the soul, are those of men and women and children, that is, of anger and desire and ignorance. Whence the kingly mind, knowing this, hands them over to judgment, to the law of God, so that they may all be utterly destroyed. And the scattered dust signifies ascetic practice and humility; for through these the footprints of the passions running through the soul become manifest to the mind.

QUESTION 21 How should one understand the saying of the Apostle: "Christ the firstfruits, then those who are Christ's at his coming, then the end"? ANSWER "Christ the firstfruits" has become so through the resurrection; "then those who are Christ’s," those who have believed in him; "then the end," the salvation of all the nations through faith. But if you wish to understand what has been said with reference to each individual, "Christ the firstfruits" is faith in him; "then those who are Christ’s," the works of faith; "then the end," the separation from all things, both sensible and intelligible, and through knowledge being joined to God. And "the last enemy that shall be destroyed is death" is when we ourselves also cede our entire self-determining will to God; then the last enemy is also destroyed. And it is called death because 14Α_042 God is life, and that which is opposed to life is reasonably called death.

QUESTION 22 What is the meaning of the bow that God set in the cloud as a covenant with the human race? ANSWER Since the bow has four colors, it signifies the flesh of the Lord, which, like ours, was made from four elements and did not have a cause of its composition, just as neither the

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Ἐπειδὴ Γρηγόριος ὁ Νύσσης ἐν τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ συγγράμμασιν φαίνεται τοῖς μὴ τὸ βάθος ἐπισταμένοις τῆς ὑψηλῆς αὐτοῦ θεωρίας πολλαχοῦ ἀποκατάστασιν ὑπεμφαίνειν, παρακαλῶ ὅπερ ἐπίστασαι περὶ τούτου εἰπεῖν.

ΑΠΟΚΡΙΣΙΣ Τρεῖς ἀποκαταστάσεις οἶδεν ἡ Ἐκκλησία· μίαν μὲν τὴν ἑκάστου κατὰ τὸν τῆς

ἀρετῆς λόγον, ἐν ᾗ ἀποκαθίσταται τὸν ἐπ᾽ αὐτῷ λόγον τῆς ἀρετῆς ἐκπληρώσας· δευτέραν δὲ τὴν τῆς ὅλης φύσεως ἐν τῇ ἀναστάσει, τὴν εἰς ἀφθαρσίαν καὶ ἀθανασίαν ἀποκατάστασιν· τρίτη δέ, ᾗ καὶ μάλιστα κατακέχρηται ἐν τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ λόγοις ὁ Νύσσης Γρηγόριος, ἐστὶν αὕτη· ἡ τῶν ψυχικῶν δυνάμεων τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ ὑποπεσουσῶν εἰς ὅπερ ἐκτίσθησαν πάλιν ἀποκατάστασις. ∆εῖ γὰρ ὥσπερ τὴν ὅλην φύσιν ἐν τῇ ἀναστάσει τὴν τῆς σαρκὸς ἀφθαρσίαν χρόνῳ ἐλπιζομένῳ ἀπολαβεῖν, οὕτως καὶ τὰς παρατραπείσας τῆς ψυχῆς δυνάμεις τῇ παρατάσει τῶν αἰώνων ἀποβαλεῖν τὰς ἐντεθείσας αὐτῇ τῆς κακίας μνήμας καὶ περάσασαν τοὺς πάντας αἰῶνας καὶ μὴ εὑρίσκουσαν στάσιν εἰς τὸν Θεὸν ἐλθεῖν, τὸν μὴ ἔχοντα πέρας, καὶ οὕτως, τῇ ἐπιγνώσει οὐ τῇ μεθέξει τῶν ἀγαθῶν, ἀπολαβεῖν τὰς δυνάμεις καὶ εἰς τὸ ἀρχαῖον ἀποκαταστῆναι καὶ δειχθῆναι τὸν δημιουργὸν ἀναίτιον τῆς ἁμαρτίας.

ΕΡΩΤΗΣΙΣ 20 Τί σημαίνει ἡ κατὰ τὸν Βὴλ ἱστορία καὶ τίς ὁ ∆ανιὴλ καὶ ὁ βασιλεὺς ∆αρεῖος

γινώσκων τὰ ἴχνη τῶν εἰσελθόντων ὅτι ἀνδρῶν καὶ γυναικῶν καὶ παιδίων εἰσίν; 14Α_040 ΑΠΟΚΡΙΣΙΣ Πᾶς ἄνθρωπος ἐν τῇ 'συγχύσει' τοῦ βίου γινόμενος τοῦτο γὰρ ἡ Βαβυλὼν

ἑρμηνεύεται ναὸν τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ψυχὴν ποιεῖ τῷ Βήλ, τουτέστιν τῷ διαβόλῳ· ἐν ᾧ εἰ γένηται ὁ ∆ανιήλ, τουτέστιν ὁ νόμος τοῦ Θεοῦ 'κρίσις' γὰρ 'Θεοῦ' ∆ανιὴλ ἑρμηνεύεται διδάσκει τὸν ∆αρεῖον, τουτέστιν τὸν βασιλέα νοῦν, ὅτι τὰ ἴχνη τῶν ἐν τῷ ναῷ, τουτέστιν τῆς ψυχῆς, περιπατούντων ἀνδρῶν εἰσιν καὶ γυναικῶν καὶ παιδίων, τουτέστιν θυμοῦ καὶ ἐπιθυμίας καὶ ἀγνοίας· ὅθεν ὁ βασιλεὺς νοῦς τοῦτο γινώσκων παραδίδωσι τῇ κρίσει, τῷ νόμῳ τοῦ Θεοῦ, εἰς τὸ πάντας ἄρδην ἀπολέσθαι. Ἡ δὲ πασθεῖσα κονία δηλοῖ τὴν ἄσκησιν καὶ τὴν ταπείνωσιν· διὰ τούτων γὰρ κατάδηλα γίνονται τῷ νῷ τὰ ἴχνη τῶν ἐν τῇ ψυχῇ διαθεόντων παθῶν.

ΕΡΩΤΗΣΙΣ 21 Πῶς δεῖ νοεῖν τὸ ὑπὸ τοῦ Ἀποστόλου εἰρημένον «ἀπαρχὴ Χριστός, ἔπειτα οἱ

τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐν τῇ παρουσίᾳ αὐτοῦ, εἶτα τὸ τέλος»; ΑΠΟΚΡΙΣΙΣ «Ἀπαρχὴ Χριστὸς» διὰ τῆς ἀναστάσεως γέγονεν, «ἔπειτα οἱ τοῦ Χριστοῦ», οἱ

εἰς αὐτὸν πιστεύσαντες, «εἶτα τὸ τέλος», πάντων τῶν ἐθνῶν ἡ διὰ πίστεως σωτηρία. Εἰ δὲ καὶ εἰς τὸν καθένα θέλεις ἐκλαβεῖν τὰ εἰρημένα, «ἀπαρχὴ Χριστός» ἐστιν ἡ εἰς αὐτὸν πίστις, «ἔπειτα οἱ τοῦ Χριστοῦ», τὰ ἔργα τῆς πίστεως, «εἶτα τὸ τέλος», τὸ χωρισθῆναι πάντων, αἰσθητῶν τε καὶ νοητῶν, καὶ διὰ γνώσεως κολληθῆναι τῷ Θεῷ. Τὸ δὲ ἔσχατος ἐχθρὸς καταργεῖται ὁ θάνατός ἐστιν ὅτ᾽ ἂν καὶ αὐτοὶ τὸ αὐτεξούσιον θέλημα ἅπαν τῷ Θεῷ παραχωρήσωμεν· τότε καταργεῖται καὶ ὁ ἔσχατος ἐχθρός· θάνατος δὲ λέγεται ἐπειδὴ ἡ 14Α_042 ζωὴ ὁ Θεός ἐστιν, τὸ δὲ ἀντικείμενον τῇ ζωῇ εἰκότως λέγεται θάνατος.

ΕΡΩΤΗΣΙΣ 22 Τί σημαίνει τὸ τόξον ὅπερ ἔθετο ἐν τῇ νεφέλῃ ὁ Θεὸς εἰς διαθήκην πρὸς τὸ γένος

τὸ ἀνθρώπινον; ΑΠΟΚΡΙΣΙΣ Ἐπειδὴ τὸ τόξον τετράχροόν ἐστιν, δηλοῖ τὴν σάρκα τοῦ Κυρίου ἐκ τεσσάρων

καθ᾽ ἡμᾶς γενομένην στοιχείων καὶ μὴ ἔχουσαν αἰτίαν συστάσεως καθάπερ οὐδὲ τὸ