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the glorified Lord, who also made you and who manifests the power granted to you to become worthy of Him, clearly adorned by His own properties through the very works and the truth, even unto me, the small and worthless and ignorant and altogether naked of all virtue and knowledge. Seeing myself humbled concerning this, I have forced myself to accept your command according to my ability, paying no regard to being considered rash by many of you; but you also, to one who expects to receive in return the beloved and lovely reward of obedience, grant your fervent prayers as is customary, so that Christ the God, the ready help of those who fear him, might come as an ally to my discourse, or rather, as the Word, He might piously supply the entire discourse for speaking.

But I ask you, as you read, not to seek from me an elegant style, as I do not have words that flatter the ear, and am ignorant of how to make them resound with elaborate divisions. For being unversed in such studies, and being inexperienced in the practice of them, I consider it a desirable and 1065 wished-for thing, if I might grasp the meaning of this holy and great teacher, even in a common phrase, and this to some extent, let alone to engage with the prolixity of the interpretations. For this theological man, as you know, being concise in speech and rich in meaning, forces one who wishes to unfold his purpose, even if he be most rhetorical and philosophical, to go on at great length, and especially me, the layman; but if your (14∆_058> God-loving zeal should, as is customary, move you to render what is written both concise and eloquent, or even to correct the entire meaning towards what is more sublime, you will receive a perfect reward, the prayers of the God-bearer to the Master of all, inasmuch as you did not allow his divine and transcendent thoughts to be swept away by unsuccessful and grovelling attempts. And following your letter, having made an inquiry concerning each chapter, I have set it down in writing, urging you to be good and benevolent judges of what is said.

A (1). "...DRAGGING DOWN OR HOLDING FAST ..".

From the oration on the love of the poor, on the passage, "I spare as a fellow-worker, and I do not know how to flee the revolt, or how not to fall from God, weighed down by fetters dragging or holding me fast to the ground."

To be dragged down is not understood by this blessed man as the same as to be held fast,

do not think so, most esteemed one, if you have been zealous to understand something worthy of his magnanimity; since he will thus appear redundant in his words and to have a mind not attending to his words, if he is not supposed to have determined by every means to guide his followers to what is most beautiful and useful, having placed a fitting thought in almost every syllable. But this is not so, by no means; but he both joins discourse with a wise mind, and to a lofty discourse he adds a loftier mind, so that lofty may be announced to lofty, and the magnitude of the truth, hitherto inaccessible to the many or even to all, might be shown forth to some degree through both. But that the enigma of what is said might become entirely clear to us, let us examine the very sayings of the blessed one as they are.

I spare, he says, as a fellow-worker, and I do not know how to flee (14∆_060> the revolt, or how not to fall from God, weighed down by fetters, dragging or holding me fast to the ground. Having said these things, he is not speaking entirely for himself, but through himself he is discoursing to the commonality of mankind, knowing that everyone who loves salvation is devoted entirely either to action or to contemplation. For without virtue and knowledge, no one has ever been able to attain salvation. If then, he says, of those who through contemplation attend upon God and of the

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δοξαζόμενον Κύριον, τόν καί ποιήσαντα ὑμᾶς καί τήν πρός τό ἀξίους αὐτοῦ γενέσθαι χαρισθεῖσαν ὑμῖν δύναμιν τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ ἰδιώμασι δι᾿ αὐτῶν τῶν ἔργων καί τῆς ἀληθείας ἀριδήλως ὡραϊσμένην ἐκφαίνοντα, μέχρις ἐμοῦ τοῦ μικροῦ καί μηδενός ἀξίου καί ἀμαθοῦς καί πάσης γυμνοῦ παντάπασιν ἀρετῆς καί γνώσεως. Περί τούτου ταπεινωθέντας θεώμενος ἑμαυτόν δέ καταδέξασθαι ὑμῶν τό ἐπίταγμα κατά δύναμιν ἐβιασάμην, μηδένα τοῦ προπετής νομισθῆναι τοῖς πολλοῖς ὑμῶν χάριν ποιησάμενος λόγον· ἀλλά καί ὑμεῖς τόν προσφιλῆ καί ἐράσμιον τῆς εὐπειθείας μισθόν ἀντιλαβεῖν ἐκδεχομένῳ τάς ὑμετέρας ἐκτενεῖς εὐχάς συνήθως χαρίσασθε, ὅπως Χριστός ὁ Θεός, ἡ ἑτοίμη τῶν φοβουμένων αὐτόν βοήθεια, ἔλθοι μοι τῷ λόγῳ σύμμαχος, μᾶλλον δέ τόν τοῦ λέγειν ὅλον εὐσεβῶς ὡς Λόγος χορηγήσοι λόγον.

Ἀξιῶ δέ ὑμᾶς ἐντυγχάνοντας, μή τήν κεκομψευμένην ἐπιζητεῖν πρός ἐμοῦ λέξιν, τούς περικομποῦντας τήν ἀκοήν λόγους οὐκ ἔχοντος, καί ταῖς περιέργοις τομαῖς ἐμπεριηχήτους ποιεῖν ἀγνοοῦντος. Ἀτριβής γάρ ὤν τῶν τοιούτων μαθημάτων, καί τῆς ἐπ᾿ αὐτοῖς μελέτης ἄπειρος τυγχάνων, ἀγαπητόν ἡγοῦμαι καί 1065 ἐπευκτόν, εἰ τῆς διανοίας τοῦ ἁγίου τούτου καί μεγάλου διδασκάλου, κἄν ἐν χυδαίᾳ φράσει, καί τοῦτο ποσῶς, καταστοχάσαιμι, μήτι δέ τῷ πολυστίχῳ τῶν ἐξηγήσεων ἐπισκήπτειν. Ὁ Θεολόγος γάρ οὗτος ἀνήρ, ὡς ἴστε, βραχυλόγος ὑπάρχων καί πολύνους ἀνάγκην δίδωσι τῷ ἐξαπλοῦν βουλομένῳ τόν αὐτοῦ σκοπόν, κἄν ὁ ῥητορικώτατος ᾗ καί φιλοσοφώτατος, διά πολλῶν ἰέναι, καί μάλιστα ἐμοί τῷ ἰδιώτῃ· εἰ δ᾿ ὑμᾶς συνήθως ὁ (14∆_058> θεοφιλής ἀνακινήσοι ζῆλος πρός τό σύντομον ἅμα καί εὐφραδές τά γραφόμενα μετακομίσαι, ἤ καί τόν νοῦν ὅλον διορθώσασθαι πρός τό ὑψηλότερον, μισθόν αὐτοτελῆ λήψεσθε, τάς τοῦ θεοφόρου πρός τόν ∆εσπότην τῶν ὅλων εὐχάς, ἅτε μή συγχωρήσαντες αὐτοῦ τά θεῖα καί ὑπερφυῆ νοήματα ταῖς ἀποτεύκτοις καί χαμαιπετέσιν ἐπιβολαῖς παρασύρεσθαι. Ἀκολούθως δέ τῇ ὑμετέρᾳ ἐπιστολῇ τήν περί ἑκάστου κεφαλαίου ποιησάμενος ζήτησιν κατεθέμην τῷ γράμματι, χρηστούς καί φιλανθρώπους ὑμᾶς τῶν λεγομένων κριτάς γενέσθαι παρακαλῶν.

Α (1). «...ΚΑΤΑΣΠΩΣΑΙΣ Ή ΚΑΤΕΧΟΥΣΑΙΣ ..».

Ἐκ τοῦ περί φιλοπτωχίας λόγου, εἰς τό, "Φείδομαι ὡς συνεργοῦ, καί οὐκ ἔχω πῶς φύγω τήν ἐπανάστασιν, ἤ πῶς μή ἀπό Θεοῦ πέσω βαρηθείς ταῖς πέδαις κατασπώσαις ἤ κατεχούσαις εἰς ἔδαφος».

Οὐ ταυτόν τῷ κατασπᾶσθαι τό κατέχεσθαι νενόηται τῷ μακαρίῳ τούτῳ

ἀνδρί, μή οὕτω νομίσῃς, δοκιμώτατε, εἴπερ τί σοι νοεῖν τῆς αὐτοῦ μεγαλονοίας ἄξιον διεσπούδασται· ἐπεί περιττός οὕτω τοῖς λόγοις καί τόν νοῦν τῷ λόγῳ μή ἐφιστάμενον ἔχων ἀναφανήσεται, εἴπερ μή πάσῃ συλλαβῇ σχεδόν τήν πρέπουσαν ἐνθέμενος ἔννοιαν πρός τά κάλλιστά τε καί χρήσιμα τούς ὀπαδούς ὁδηγεῖν παντί τρόπῳ διεγνωκέναι ὑποληφθῇ. Οὐχ οὕτω δέ ταῦτ᾿ ἔχει, πόθεν; ἀλλά καί νῷ λόγον σοφῷ συνίστησι, καί λόγῳ ὑψηλῷ νοῦν ἐφίστησιν ὑψηλότερον, ἵν᾿ ὑψηλός ὑψηλῷ διαγγέλληται, καί τῆς ἀληθείας ποσῶς δι᾿ ἀμφοῖν τό τέως τοῖς πολλοῖς ἤ καί πᾶσιν ἀνεπίβατον μέγεθος διαδειχθῇ. Ἵνα δέ φανερόν ἅπαν ἡμῖν γένηται τῶν λεγομένων τό αἴνιγμα, αὐτά ὡς ἔχει τοῦ μακαρίου σκοπήσωμεν τά ῥητά.

Φείδομαι, φησίν, ὡς συνεργοῦ, καί οὐκ ἔχω πῶς φύγω (14∆_060> τήν ἐπανάστασιν, ἤ πῶς μή ἀπό Θεοῦ πέσω βαρηθείς ταῖς πέδαις, κατασπώσαις ἤ κατεχούσαις εἰς ἔδαφος. Ταῦτ᾿ εἰπών οὐχ ἑαυτῷ πάντως, ἀλλά δι᾿ ἑαυτοῦ τῷ κοινῷ τῆς ἀνθρωπότητος διαλέγεται, εἰδώς ὅτι πᾶς τις ὁ σωτηρίας ἐρῶν ἤ πράξει ἤ θεωρίᾳ πάντως προσανέχει. Ἀρετῆς γάρ καί γνώσεως χωρίς οὐδαμῶς οὐδείς πώποτε τυχεῖν σωτηρίας δεδύνηται. Εἴπερ οὖν τῶν διά θεωρίας, φησί, Θεῷ προσεδρευόντων καί τοῦ