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17 Concerning the condescension of God. But now something similar has happened, as in the case of fledglings. For when the mother has reared them, she leads them out of the nest. But if she sees them weak and falling and still needing to stay inside, she leaves them for more days, not so that they might always remain inside, but so that when their wings have become properly strong and their full strength has been added, they might then take to flight with safety. So too our Lord from the beginning drew us to heaven and showed the way leading there, not being ignorant but knowing very well that we would not be sufficient for that flight, yet wishing to show us that the fall happens not contrary to his will but because of our weakness. But when he had shown this, he then let us be nourished for a long time as in a nest, in this world and in marriage. But as in that long time the wings of virtue grew for us, then quietly and little by little he came and led us out of our stay here, teaching us to fly higher. Those, then, who are still more sluggishly disposed and sleep the deep sleep still linger in the nest, nailed to the affairs of the world. But those who are truly noble and lovers of the light, leaving it with great ease, fly to the heights and take hold of the heavens, having left behind everything on earth: marriage, wealth, cares, all other things that are accustomed to drag us down to the earth. Let us not, then, consider the permission for marriage that was given from the beginning to be a necessity for the future, preventing us from departing from marriage. For that he wishes us to leave it, hear what he says: "He that is able to receive it, let him receive it." But if he did not command this from the beginning, do not be surprised. For a physician does not prescribe everything at once and at the same time for the sick; but when they are held by fever, he keeps them from solid food, and when they have driven off that fire and the weakness resulting from it to the body, then at last, having freed them from disagreeable foods, he brings them to their customary diet. And just as in bodies the elements, warring against each other more or less, produce disease, so too in the soul the excesses of the passions destroy its health. And it is necessary above all to have the command at the right time for the underlying passions, since without both of these a law by itself would not be sufficient to correct the perversion that has come to be in the soul. Just as, therefore, the nature of medicines by itself could never remove a wound—for what medicines are for wounds, laws are for sins. But you do not question a physician who now cuts, now burns, and now does neither of these things, often for the same wounds, and this when he often fails to achieve his goal; but being a man, will you meddle with God who never errs but orders all things worthily of his own wisdom, and will you demand an account of his commands and not yield to his infinite wisdom? And how is this not the utmost madness? He said: "Increase and multiply." For the time demanded this, as nature was raging and was not able to bear the sting of the passions, nor had any other harbor to which to flee in that storm. But what should he have commanded? To live in continence and virginity? But this would have worked a greater fall and made the flame more violent. For if someone were to take away from children who need only milk and force them to partake of the food proper for men, there is nothing to prevent them from perishing immediately; so great an evil is untimeliness. For these reasons virginity was not given from the beginning, or rather, virginity did appear to us from the beginning and before marriage. But for these reasons marriage entered in later and was considered a necessary thing, since if Adam had remained obedient, he would not have needed this. And how, he says, would so many myriads have come to be? But I in turn you

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17 Περὶ συγκαταβάσεως τοῦ Θεοῦ. Νῦν δὲ παρόμοιον γέγονεν οἷον ἐπὶ τῶν νεοττῶν. Καὶ γὰρ ἐκείνους ὅταν ἐκθρέψῃ ἡ μήτηρ, προάγει μὲν τῆς καλιᾶς. Ἂν δὲ ἀσθενοῦντας ἴδῃ καὶ καταπίπτοντας καὶ δεομένους ἔτι τῆς ἔνδον μονῆς, ἀφίησιν ἔτι πλείους ἡμέρας οὐχ ἵνα διὰ παντὸς ἔνδον μένωσιν ἀλλ' ἵνα παγέντων αὐτοῖς καλῶς τῶν πτερῶν καὶ τῆς ἰσχύος προσγενομένης ἁπάσης μετὰ ἀσφαλείας λοιπὸν τῆς πτήσεως ἔχωνται. Οὕτω καὶ ὁ κύριος ἡμῶν ἐξ ἀρχῆς μὲν εἷλκεν ἐπὶ τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν ἐκεῖ φέρουσαν ὁδὸν ἐδείκνυ οὐκ ἀγνοῶν μὲν ἀλλὰ καὶ σφόδρα εἰδὼς ὅτι οὐκ ἀρκέσομεν πρὸς τὴν πτῆσιν ἐκείνην, δεῖξαι δὲ ἡμῖν βουλόμενος ὅτι οὐ παρὰ τὴν αὐτοῦ βούλησιν ἀλλὰ παρὰ τὴν ἡμετέραν ἀσθένειαν τὸ πτῶμα γίνεται. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἔδειξεν, οὕτω λοιπὸν ἀφίησιν ὥσπερ ἐν καλιᾷ τῷ κόσμῳ τούτῳ καὶ τῷ γάμῳ τρέφεσθαι χρόνον πολύν. Ὡς δὲ ἡμῖν ἐν τῷ πολλῷ χρόνῳ τὰ τῆς ἀρετῆς ἔφυ πτερά, τότε ἠρέμα καὶ κατὰ μικρὸν ἐλθὼν ἐξήγαγε τῆς ἐνταῦθα μονῆς διδάσκων ὑψηλότερα πέτασθαι. Οἱ μὲν οὖν ἔτι νωθρότερον διακείμενοι καὶ τὸν βαθὺν ὕπνον καθεύδοντες ἐμφιλοχωροῦσιν ἔτι τῇ καλιᾷ τοῖς τοῦ κόσμου προσηλωμένοι πράγμασιν. Οἱ δὲ ὄντως γενναῖοι καὶ τοῦ φωτὸς ἐρασταὶ μετὰ πολλῆς εὐκολίας ἀφέντες αὐτὴν πρὸς τὰ μετέωρα πέτανται καὶ τῶν οὐρανῶν ἔχονται, πάντα τὰ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς καταλείψαντες, τὸν γάμον, τὰ χρήματα, τὰς φροντίδας, τὰ ἄλλα πάντα ὅσα πρὸς τὴν γῆν ἡμᾶς καθέλκειν εἴωθε. Μὴ τοίνυν τὴν ἐξ ἀρχῆς γενομένην ἐπιτροπὴν τοῦ γάμου, ταύτην ἀνάγκην εἰς τὸ ἑξῆς εἶναι νομίζωμεν κωλύουσαν ἀναχωρεῖν τοῦ γάμου. Ὅτι γὰρ ἡμᾶς αὐτὸν ἀφεῖναι βούλεται, ἄκουσον τί φησιν· «Ὁ δυνάμενος χωρεῖν χωρείτω.» Εἰ δὲ μὴ παρὰ τὴν ἀρχὴν τοῦτο ἐπέταξε, μὴ θαυμάσῃς. Οὐδὲ γὰρ ἰατρὸς πάντα ὑφ' ἓν τοῖς κάμνουσι καὶ κατὰ τὸν αὐτὸν καιρὸν προστάττει, ἀλλ' ὅταν μὲν ὑπὸ τοῦ πυρετοῦ κατέχωνται, τῆς στερεᾶς αὐτοὺς ἀπείργει τροφῆς, ὅταν δὲ ἀποθῶνται ἐκεῖνο τὸ πῦρ καὶ τὴν ἀπ' αὐτοῦ τῷ σώματι προσγενομένην ἀσθένειαν, τότε λοιπὸν ἀπαλλάξας αὐτοὺς τῶν δυσαρέστων σιτίων ἐπὶ τὴν συνήθη φέρει δίαιταν. Ὥσπερ δὲ ἐν τοῖς σώμασι τὰ στοιχεῖα πρὸς ἄλληλα στασιάζοντα κατὰ τὸ πλέον ἢ ἔλαττον τὴν νόσον ἐργάζεται, οὕτω καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς ψυχῆς αἱ τῶν παθῶν ἀμετρίαι διαφθείρουσι τὴν ὑγίειαν αὐτῆς. Καὶ δεῖ μάλιστα ἐπὶ καιροῦ τοῦ καταλλήλως τοῖς ὑποκειμένοις πάθεσιν ἔχειν τὸ πρόσταγμα, ὡς τούτων ἄνευ ἀμφοτέρων οὐκ ἂν ἀρκέσειε νόμος καθ' ἑαυτὸν διορθῶσαι τὴν ἐν τῇ ψυχῇ γενομένην διαστροφήν. Ὥσπερ οὖν οὐδὲ ἡ τῶν φαρμάκων φύσις αὐτὴ καθ' ἑαυτὴν δύναιτ' ἂν ἕλκος ἀφανίσαι ποτέ, ὅπερ γὰρ ἐπὶ τῶν τραυμάτων τὰ φάρμακα, τοῦτο ἐπὶ τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων οἱ νόμοι. Σὺ δὲ ἰατρὸν νῦν μὲν τέμνοντα, νῦν δὲ καίοντα, νῦν δὲ οὐδέτερον τούτων ποιοῦντα ἐπὶ τῶν αὐτῶν πολλάκις τραυμάτων οὐ πολυπραγμονεῖς, καὶ ταῦτα πολλάκις ἀποσφαλέντα τοῦ τέλους, τὸν δὲ Θεὸν ἄνθρωπος ὢν τὸν οὐδαμοῦ μὲν διαμαρτάνοντα, πάντα δὲ ἀξίως τῆς οἰκείας οἰκονομοῦντα σοφίας περιεργάσῃ καὶ τῶν προσταγμάτων εὐθύνας ἀπαιτήσεις καὶ οὐ παραχωρήσεις τῷ τῆς σοφίας ἀπείρῳ; Καὶ πῶς οὐκ ἐσχάτης ταῦτα παραπληξίας; Εἶπεν· «Αὐξάνεσθε καὶ πληθύνεσθε.» Τοῦτο γὰρ ὁ καιρὸς ἀπῄτει τῆς φύσεως μαινομένης καὶ τὸν τῶν παθῶν οἶστρον μὴ δυναμένης ἐνεγκεῖν οὐδὲ ἐχούσης εἰς ἕτερόν τινα λιμένα καταφυγεῖν ἐν ἐκείνῃ τῇ ζάλῃ. Ἀλλὰ τί κελεύειν ἐχρῆν; Ἐν ἐγκρατείᾳ καὶ παρθενίᾳ διάγειν; Ἀλλὰ τοῦτο μεῖζον ἂν τὸ πτῶμα εἰργάσατο καὶ τὴν φλόγα σφοδροτέραν ἐποίησε. Καὶ γὰρ τοὺς γάλακτος μόνου δεομένους παῖδας ἂν εἴ τις ἐκείνης ἀπαγαγὼν τῆς τροφῆς τῆς ἀνδράσι προσηκούσης ἀναγκάζῃ μεταλαμβάνειν, οὐδὲν τὸ κωλύον αὐτοὺς ἀπολέσθαι εὐθέως· τοσοῦτον ἡ ἀκαιρία κακόν. ∆ιὰ ταῦτα ἐξ ἀρχῆς οὐκ ἐδόθη ἡ παρθενία, μᾶλλον δὲ ἡ παρθενία μὲν ἐξ ἀρχῆς καὶ τοῦ γάμου προτέρα ἡμῖν ἐφάνη. ∆ιὰ ταῦτα δὲ ἐπεισῆλθεν ὕστερον ὁ γάμος καὶ πρᾶγμα ἀναγκαῖον ἐνομίζετο εἶναι, ὡς εἴ γε ἔμεινεν ὑπακούων ὁ Ἀδάμ, οὐκ ἂν ἐδέησε τούτου. Καὶ πῶς ἄν, φησίν, αἱ τοσαῦται μυριάδες ἐγένοντο; Ἐγὼ δὲ σὲ πάλιν