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our fathers, speaking about himself he added, But I am a worm, and not a man. And the uncertainty of the future he so had before his eyes, as to say: Lighten my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death. And of so many sins he considered himself to be responsible, as to say: Be merciful to my sin, for it is great. To you then, the great, even these things are sufficient; but for us, even with these remedies, there is a strong and sufficient necessity to cast down all pride and arrogance. What is this then? The multitude of sins, the evil conscience; which, when it takes hold of us, does not allow us, even willing, to be lifted up on high. Wherefore I beg and beseech you, by that very boldness which through your right actions you have acquired before God, to stretch out a hand to us who are continually in need, so that we may be able to both mourn worthily the burden of so many evils, and having mourned, to take hold of some beloved way, which leads us to heaven, so that we may not, having departed to Hades, where no one can make confession, suffer the things of the dishonored, with no one delivering us any more. For as long as we are here, we shall be able to reap great things from you, and you to benefit us in the greatest ways; but when we depart to that place, where neither friend, nor brother, nor father will be able to help, nor to stand by us as we are punished, it will be necessary then, in perplexity and deep darkness and a great lack of comforters, to pay the immortal penalty, becoming unconsumed food for the all-consuming flame.

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οἱ πατέρες ἡμῶν, περὶ ἑαυτοῦ λέγων ἐπήγαγεν, Ἐγὼ δέ εἰμι σκώληξ, καὶ οὐκ ἄνθρωπος. Τὸ δὲ τοῦ μέλλοντος ἄδηλον οὕτως εἶχε πρὸ τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν, ὡς λέγειν· Φώτισον τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς μου, μή ποτε ὑπνώσω εἰς θάνατον. Καὶ ἁμαρτημάτων δὲ οὕτω πολλῶν ὑπεύθυνον ἑαυτὸν εἶναι ἐνόμιζεν, ὡς λέγειν· Ἱλάσθητι τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ μου, πολλὴ γάρ ἐστιν. Ὑμῖν μὲν οὖν τοῖς μεγάλοις ἀρκεῖ καὶ ταῦτα· ἡμῖν δὲ καὶ μετὰ τούτων τῶν φαρμάκων ἐστὶν ἀνάγκη ἰσχυρὰ καὶ ἱκανὴ καθελεῖν τὸ φρόνημα καὶ τὴν ἀλαζονείαν ἅπασαν. Τί δὴ τοῦτό ἐστι; Τὸ τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων πλῆθος, τὸ συνειδὸς τὸ πονηρόν· ὅπερ ἐπειδὰν ἡμῶν ἐπιλάβηται, οὐδὲ ἑκόντας ἀφίησιν ἀρθῆναι πρὸς τὸ ὕψος. ∆ιὸ δὴ δέομαι καὶ ἀντιβολῶ πρὸς τῆς παῤῥησίας αὐτῆς, ἧς διὰ τῶν κατορθωμάτων ἐκτήσω πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν, χεῖρα ἡμῖν ὀρέξαι συνεχῶς δεομένοις, ὥστε δυνηθῆναι καὶ πενθῆσαι τὸν φόρτον τῶν τοσούτων κακῶν κατ' ἀξίαν, καὶ πενθήσαντας ἐπιλαβέσθαι τινὸς ὁδοῦ φίλης, καὶ πρὸς τὸν οὐρανὸν φερούσης ἡμᾶς, ἵνα μὴ ἀπελθόντες εἰς τὸν ᾅδην, ἔνθα οὐδεὶς ἐξομολογεῖσθαι δύναται, τὰ τῶν ἠτιμωμένων πάθωμεν, οὐδενὸς ἡμᾶς ἐξαιρουμένου λοιπόν. Ἕως μὲν γὰρ ἂν ἐνθάδε ὦμεν, καὶ ἡμεῖς παρ' ὑμῶν μεγάλα καρπώσασθαι δυνησόμεθα, καὶ ὑμεῖς ἡμᾶς εὐεργετῆσαι τὰ μέγιστα· ἐπειδὰν δὲ ἀπέλθωμεν ἐκεῖ, ἔνθα μήτε φίλος, μήτε ἀδελφὸς, μήτε πατὴρ ἐπαρκέσαι δυνήσεται, μήτε παραστῆναι κολαζομένοις ἡμῖν, ἀνάγκη λοιπὸν ἐν ἀπορίᾳ καὶ σκότῳ βαθεῖ καὶ πολλῇ τῶν παραμυθησομένων ἐρημίᾳ τὴν ἀθάνατον τίνειν δίκην, ἀνάλωτον τροφὴν τῇ παμφάγῳ γινομένους φλογί.