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and whence we are borne, or where we are led, and who we are in truth, shall we know? But if we are ignorant of ourselves, much more so of the One who is incomparably beyond us. For if we were not ignorant of ourselves, (22) we would not speak daringly about God; for to speak about God and divine things while we are unenlightened and empty of the Holy Spirit, reveals our ignorance of ourselves. And rightly so; for if we knew ourselves precisely, we would never have considered ourselves worthy even to gaze into heaven, nor to see the light of this world, nor to tread upon the earth itself, but we would have been eager to bury ourselves beneath the earth.

For what is more impure, tell me, than one who with conceit and arrogance attempts to teach the things of the Spirit without the Spirit? What is more defiled than one who has not repented and purified himself beforehand, but having neglected this, desires to theologize and to discourse daringly about the things that are and are ever the same, through falsely-named knowledge alone and external wisdom? For even if he has sinned in no other way, which is impossible, this alone makes such a person liable to eternal judgment, since "every proud-hearted person is an abomination to the Lord." For some of these have run aground into such folly, as to neither say nor think that they have sinned. What madness! No one is without sin, except God alone; "For all," says the divine Apostle, "have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by his grace." But if, according to the holy oracle, no one is without sin except God alone, and all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, he who says he has not sinned is as one who says: "I will set my throne upon the clouds and I will be like the Most High." But if you confess that you have sinned, show me the genuine confession for your sins, the sincere faith toward the spiritual father who has received your thoughts, the submission, the (23) obedience in humble tasks, the service to the least of the brothers, the ministry to the sick, and furthermore the humility from the soul, the unpretentious, unfeigned, and unhypocritical character. And if with an inward disposition of soul you have placed yourself beneath all, whence are born continual compunction and joy-making tears, from which and through which the purification of the soul comes to the diligent one and the knowledge of the mysteries of God, then speak about divine and human matters, and I will recognize the power of your words.

For the fruit and the work of repentance are these things, which drive away ignorance, and at the same time add knowledge; and I mean a knowledge first of ourselves and of our own affairs, then of things beyond us and of the divine mysteries unseen and unknown to the unrepentant, that is, of our faith, which no one can enrich before the working of the things I have mentioned, even if he should pass through all encyclopedic philosophy; but if he does not become a rich partaker of this, he will pass the time of his life in the deepest darkness of ignorance. For even if the divine things and the things concerning God lie in writings and are read by all to all, yet these things are revealed only to those who have repented fervently and have been well purified through sincere repentance, and to the extent that the proportion and measure of their repentance and purification exists; to whom also the depths of the Spirit are manifested and from whom the word of the wisdom and knowledge of God springs forth, like a mighty-flowing river overwhelming the minds of opponents. But to all others they remain unknown and hidden, and are in no way unfolded by the One who opens the mind of the faithful to understand the scriptures. And rightly so; "For my mystery," (24) He says, "is for me and for mine." Therefore, such people seem to see while not seeing, and to hear while not hearing at all, and to understand while being without understanding, being unable to grasp the sense of what is read. And just as each of the

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καί πόθεν φερόμεθα, ἤ ποῦ ἀπαγόμεθα καί τίνες ἐσμέν ἐν ἀληθείᾳ ἐπιγνωσόμεθα; Εἰ δέ ἡμᾶς αὐτούς ἀγνοοῦμεν, πολλῷ μᾶλλον τόν ὄντα ἀσυγκρίτως ὑπέρ ἡμᾶς. Εἰ γάρ μή ἑαυτούς ἠγνοοῦμεν, (22) οὐκ ἄν τολμηρῶς περί Θεοῦ ἐφθεγγόμεθα· τό γάρ περί Θεοῦ καί τῶν θείων λέγειν ἀφωτίστους ὄντας ἡμᾶς καί κενούς Πνεύματος Ἁγίου, ἄγνοιαν ἡμῶν ἑαυτῶν ἐμφανίζει. Καί εἰκότως· εἰ γάρ ἑαυτούς ἀκριβῶς ἐγινώσκομεν, οὐδέ εἰς οὐρανόν ἀτενίσαι, οὐδέ τό φῶς τοῦ κόσμου τούτου βλέπειν, οὐδέ πατεῖν τήν γῆν αὐτήν ἀξίους ἄν ἡμᾶς ἑαυτούς ἐλογισάμεθα πώποτε, ἀλλ᾿ ὑπό γῆν κατορύξαι προεθυμήθημεν ἄν.

Τί γάρ ἀκαθαρτότερον, εἰπέ μοι, τοῦ μετά οἰήσεως καί ὑπερηφανίας διδάσκειν ἐπιχειροῦντος τά τοῦ Πνεύματος ἄνευ Πνεύματος; Τί μιαρώτερον τοῦ μή μετανοήσαντος καί προκαθάραντος ἑαυτόν, ἀλλά τοῦτο μέν ἀφέντος, διά μόνης δέ τῆς ψευδωνύμου γνώσεως καί τῆς ἔξω σοφίας βουλομένου θεολογεῖν και περί τῶν ὄντων καί ἀεί ὡσαύτως ὄντων τολμηρῶς διαλέγεσθαι; Εἰ γάρ καί μηδέν ἕτερον ἁμαρτήσας ἐστίν, ὅπερ ἀδύνατον, τοῦτο δέ αὐτό μόνον ὑπόδικον κρίσεως αἰωνίου καθίστησι τόν τοιοῦτον, ἐπειδή "ἀκάθαρτος παρά Κυρίῳ πᾶς ὑψηλοκάρδιος". Εἰς τοσοῦτον γάρ ἀνοίας ἐξώκειλαν τῶν τοιούτων τινές, ὥστε μηδέ λέγειν μηδέ νομίζειν ἡμαρτηκέναι αὐτούς. Τῆς μανίας! Οὐδείς ἀναμάρτητος, εἰ μή εἷς ὁ Θεός· "Πάντες γάρ" φησίν "ἥμαρτον" ὁ θεῖος Ἀπόστολος, "καί ὑστεροῦνται τῆς δόξης τοῦ Θεοῦ, δικαιούμενοι δωρεάν τῇ αὐτοῦ χάριτι". Εἰ δέ, κατά τό ὅσιον λόγιον, οὐδείς ἀναμάρτητος εἰ μή εἷς ὁ Θεός καί πάντες ἥμαρτον καί ὑστεροῦνται τῆς δόξης τοῦ Θεοῦ, ὁ λέγων μή ἡμαρτηκέναι, ὡς εἰπόντι· "Θήσω τόν θρόνον μου ἐπί τῶν νεφελῶν καί ἔσομαι ὅμοιος τῷ Ὑψίστῳ". Εἰ δέ ἡμαρτηκέναι ὁμολογεῖς, δεῖξόν μοι τήν γνησίαν ὑπέρ τῶν ἡμαρτημένων ἐξομολόγησιν, τήν πρός τόν ἀναδεξάμενόν σου τούς λογισμούς πνευματικόν πατέρα πίστιν εἰλικρινῆ, τήν ὑποταγήν, τήν (23) ἐν τοῖς εὐτελέσιν ἔργοις ὑπακοήν, τήν ἐν τοῖς ὑποδεεστέροις τῶν ἀδελφῶν ὑπηρεσίαν, τήν ἐν τοῖς ἀσθενοῦσι διακονίαν, ἔτι δέ τήν ἀπό ψυχῆς ταπείνωσιν, τό ἀσχημάτιστον, τό ἄπλαστον καί ἀνυπόκριτον ἦθος. Καί εἰ ἐνδιαθέτῳ γνώμῃ ψυχῆς ὑποκάτω πάντων ἑαυτόν ἔσχες, ὅθεν ἡ διηνεκής κατάνυξις καί τά χαροποιά δάκρυα τίκτονται, ἀφ᾿ ὧν καί δι᾿ ὧν ἡ κάθαρσις ἐπιγίνεται τῆς ψυχῆς τῷ σπουδαίῳ καί ἡ τῶν τοῦ Θεοῦ μυστηρίων ἐπίγνωσις, καί τότε λάλει περί θείων καί ἀνθρωπίνων πραγμάτων, κἀγώ σου τῶν λόγων γνωρίσω τήν δύναμιν.

Ὁ γάρ καρπός καί τό ἔργον τῆς μετανοίας ταῦτά εἰσιν, ἅ τήν μέν ἄγνοιαν ἀποδιώκουσι, τήν δέ γνῶσιν ὁμοῦ προστιθέασι· γνῶσιν δέ λέγω τήν περί ἡμᾶς πρῶτον καί τῶν καθ᾿ ἡμᾶς, ἔπειτα τῶν ὑπέρ ἡμᾶς καί τῶν θείων τῶν τοῖς ἀμετανοήτοις ἀθεάτων καί ἀγνώστων μυστηρίων, φημί δή τῆς καθ᾿ ἡμᾶς πίστεως, ἥν οὐδείς ἄν πλουτήσῃ πρό τῆς ἐργασίας τῶν εἰρημένων, εἰ καί πᾶσαν ἐγκύκλιον διέλθοι φιλοσοφίαν· εἰ δέ μή ταύτης ἐν μετοχῇ γένηται πλουσίᾳ ἐν σκότει βαθυτάτῳ διάξει τῆς ἀγνωσίας τόν τῆς ζωῆς αὐτοῦ χρόνον. Εἰ γάρ καί ἐν γράμμασι κεῖνται καί παρά πάντων τά θεῖα καί περί τῶν θείων πᾶσιν ἀναγινώσκονται, ἀλλά μόνοις ἐκείνοις ταῦτα ἀποκαλύπτονται τοῖς θερμῶς μετανοήσασι καί διά τῆς εἰλικρινοῦς μετανίας καλῶς καθαρθεῖσι, καί τοσοῦτον, καθ᾿ ὅσον ἡ ἀναλογία καί τό μέτρον ὑπάρχει τῆς αὐτῶν μετανοίας ὁμοῦ καί καθάρσεως· οἷς καί φανεροῦνται τά βάθη τοῦ Πνεύματος καί ἀφ᾿ ὧν ὁ λόγος πηγάζει τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ σοφίας καί γνώσεως, ὡς ποταμός πολύρρους κατακλύζων τάς φρένας τῶν ἐναντίων. Τοῖς δέ γε ἄλλοις ἅπασιν ἄγνωστα καί κεκρυμμένα ὑπάρχει καί μηδόλως ἀναπτυσσόμενα ὑπό τοῦ διανοίγοντος τόν νοῦν τῶν πιστῶν εἰς τό συνιέναι τάς γραφάς. Καί εἰκότως· "Τό γάρ μυστήριόν μου, (24) φησίν, ἐμοί καί τοῖς ἐμοῖς". Τοίνυν καί δοκοῦσι βλέπειν μή βλέποντες οἱ τοιοῦτοι καί ἀκούειν μηδόλως ἀκούοντες καί συνιέναι ἀσύνετοι ὄντες, αἴσθησιν τῶν ἀναγινωσκομένων λαβεῖν μή δυνάμενοι. Καί καθάπερ ἕκαστος τῶν