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But here it is not so, but the war happens to be continuous, and it is continuously necessary for the soldiers of Christ to be clothed in their own weapons. For it is not possible for this war to cease at night or in the day or in a single moment of time, but even while we are eating and drinking and sleeping and doing anything whatsoever, we happen to be in the heat of the battle. For we have incorporeal enemies, who also stand continually before our face, even if they are not seen by us, and they look carefully if they might be able to find any part of us uncovered to fix their arrows and kill us. And there is no one who is able to protect himself from perceptible walls and fortifications and be hidden for even one hour and to breathe a little by himself or to use flight and be saved, nor for another to undertake this war for another, but every necessity lies upon all men to fight this war, and either for one having conquered to live or for one having been struck to die without a doubt.

(58) But a blow unto death is every unrepented and unconfessed sin and the falling into some despair, which is of our own choice and will. For if we do not betray ourselves to the pit of carelessness and despair, the demons will in no way prevail at all against us. But even after we are struck, if we wish, we become braver and more experienced through fervent repentance. For after being struck and dying to rise again and to fight, is of the most noble and exceedingly brave, which is also worthy of much and full of wonder. For to be kept unstruck is not up to us, but to be immortal or mortal is up to us. For if we do not despair, we will not die, death will not rule over us, but we will always be strong, taking refuge in repentance in our all-powerful and man-loving God.

Therefore, I exhort myself and all of you to show all zeal, all courage of patience and endurance through good deeds, so that journeying through all the commandments and precepts of Christ, with eagerness of soul we may arrive at the eternal mansions in the conveyances of the Spirit, and be deemed worthy to stand before and worship the one and undivided Trinity in Christ Himself our God, to whom be the glory and the dominion unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Discourse 4. (59)

Concerning repentance and compunction. And from what works it is possible to acquire it. And that without tears it is impossible for anyone to arrive at purity

and dispassion. Since, fathers and brothers, of our holy father Symeon the

Stoudite you read the divinely-inspired writings of his high deeds, which he set forth for the benefit of many, being moved by the divine Spirit, along with his other supernatural achievements he also wrote and taught this expressly thus, as he himself kept it inviolably in his whole life, saying: "Brother, without tears never receive communion". The hearers, having heard this—for many were present, not only lay people but also monks renowned and celebrated for virtue—marveled at the saying, and having gazed at one another said, as if smiling faintly, with one accord with one voice: "Then we shall never receive communion, but we shall all remain without communion!". Having heard these things, I, wretched and miserable, both recalling privately those very ones who said these things and their words, and being greatly distressed, wept bitterly, in pain

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Ἐνταῦθα δέ οὐχ οὕτως, ἀλλά διηνεκής τυγχάνει ὁ πόλεμος καί διηνεκῶς ἀνάγκη περιβεβλῆσθαι τοῖς τοῦ Χριστοῦ στρατώταις τά ἑαυτῶν ὅπλα. Οὐκ ἔνι γάρ ἐν νυκτί ἤ ἐν ἡμέρᾳ ἤ ἐν μιᾷ καιροῦ ῥοπῇ τοῦτον τόν πόλεμον παύσασθαι, ἀλλά καί ἐσθιόντων ἡμῶν και πινόντων καί κοιμωμένων καί ὁτιοῦν ἐργαζομένων, ἐν τῇ ἀκμῇ τῆς μάχης τυγχάνομεν. Ἀσάρκους γάρ ἔχομεν ἐχθρούς, οἵτινες καί κατά πρόσωπον ἡμῶν διηνεκῶς ἵστανται, εἰ καί μή βλέπονται παρ᾿ ἡμῶν, καί σκοποῦσιν ἀκριβῶς εἴ που εὑρεῖν δυνηθῶσι μέλος ἡμῶν ἄσκεπον τοῦ ἐμπῆξαι τά αὐτῶν βέλη καί θανατῶσαι ἡμᾶς. Καί οὐδείς ἐστιν ὁ ἀπό τειχῶν αἰσθητῶν καί ὀχυρωμάτων ἑαυτόν περιφυλάξαι δυνάμενος καί κἄν μίαν ὥραν ἀποκρυβῆναι καί μικρόν ἀναπνεῦσαι καθ᾿ ἑαυτόν ἤ φυγῇ χρήσασθαι καί σωθῆναι, οὐδέ ἄλλον ἀντ᾿ ἄλλου τοῦτον τόν πόλεμον ἀναδέξασθαι, ἀλλά πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις ἀνάγκη πᾶσα ἐπίκειται τοῦ πολεμῆσαι τοῦτον τόν πόλεμον, καί ἤ νικήσαντά τινα ζῆσαι ἤ πληγέντα ἀποθανεῖν ἀναμφιβόλως.

(58) Πληγή δέ πρός θάνατόν ἐστι πᾶσα ἀμετανόητος καί ἀνεξαγόρευτος ἁμαρτία καί τό εἰς ἀπόγνωσιν τινά ἐμπεσεῖν, ὅπερ τῆς ἡμετέρας ἐστί προαιρέσεως καί θελήσεως. Εἰ γάρ ἡμεῖς ἑαυτούς οὐ προδώσομεν τῷ τῆς ἀμελείας βόθρῳ καί ἀπογνώσεως, οὐδέν οὐδαμῶς οἱ δαίμονες ἰσχύσουσι καθ᾿ ἡμῶν. Ἀλλά καί μετά τό πληγῆναι ἡμᾶς, ἐάν θέλωμεν, ἀνδρειότεροι καί ἐμπειρότεροι διά θερμῆς μετανοίας γινόμεθα. Μετά γάρ τό πληγῆναι καί θανεῖν πάλιν ἀναστῆναι καί πολεμεῖν, τῶν γενναιοτάτων καί ἄγαν ἀδρείως ἐστίν, ὅπερ καί πολλοῦ ἄξιόν ἐστι καί θαύματος πλῆρες. Τό μέν γάρ ἀπλήγους ἡμᾶς διατηρηθῆναι οὐκ ἔστι τῶν ἐφ᾿ ἡμῖν, τό δέ ἀθανάτους εἶναι ἤ θνητούς τῶν ἐφ᾿ ἡμῖν ἐστι. Μή ἀπογινωσκόντων γάρ ἡμῶν, οὐ τεθνηξόμεθα, θάνατος οὐ κυριεύσει ἡμῶν, ἀλλά ἐσόμεθα ἀεί δυνατοί, τῷ παντοδυνάμῳ καί φιλανθρώπῳ Θεῷ ἡμῶν ἐν μετανοίᾳ προσφεύγοντες.

∆ιό δή τοῦτο παρακαλῶ ἐμαυτόν τε καί πάντας ὑμᾶς πᾶσαν σπουδήν, πᾶσαν ἀνδρείαν ὑπομονῆς καί καρτερίας διά τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἐπιδείξασθαι πράξεων, ἵνα διά πασῶν τῶν τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐντολῶν καί προσταγμάτων ὁδεύοντες, ἐν προθυμίᾳ ψυχῆς εἰς τάς αἰωνίους μονάς καταντήσωμεν ἐν ἀγωγίμοις τοῦ Πνεύματος, καί τῇ μιᾷ καί ἀδιαιρέτῳ Τριάδι παραστῆναι καί προσκυνῆσαι καταξιωθῶμεν ἐν αὐτῷ Χριστῷ τῷ Θεῷ ἡμῶν, ᾧ ἡ δόξα καί τό κράτος εἰς τούς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν.

Λόγος ∆΄. (59)

Περί μετανοίας καί κατανύξεως. Καί ἐκ ποίων ταύτην ἔργων κτήσασθαι δυνατόν. Καί ὅτι ἄνευ δακρύων ἀδύνατον εἰς καθαρότητα

καί ἀπάθειαν ἐλάσαι τινά. Ἐπειδήπερ, πατέρες καί ἀδελφοί, τοῦ ἁγίου πατρός ἡμῶν Συμεών τοῦ

Στουδιώτου τά θεόπνευστα τῶν ὑψηλῶν αὐτοῦ πράξεων ἀναγινώσκετε συγγράμματα, ἅπερ ἐκεῖνος εἰς πολλῶν ὠφέλειαν ἐξέθετο θείῳ κινούμενος Πνεύματι, μετά τῶν ἄλλων αὐτοῦ ὑπερφυῶν κατορθωμάτων καί τοῦτο ῥητῶς οὕτως, καθώς ἐν πάσῃ τῇ ζωῇ αὐτοῦ ἐκεῖνος ἀπαραβάτως ἐφύλαξεν, ἔγραψε καί ἐδίδαξε λέγων· "Ἀδελφέ, ἄνευ δακρύων μή κοινωνήσῃ ποτέ". Τοῦτο οἱ ἀκροαταί ἀκούσαντες - πολλοί γάρ παρῆσαν οὐ μόνον λαϊκοί, ἀλλά καί μοναχοί τῶν ὀνομαστῶν καί περιδόξων ἐπ᾿ ἀρετῇ , ἐθαύμασαν ἐπί τῷ λόγῳ καί ἀλλήλοις ἐνατενίσαντες εἶπον, ὡς ὑπομειδιῶντες, ὁμοθυμαδόν μιᾷ τῇ φωνῇ· "Λοιπόν ἡμεῖς οὐδέποτε κοινωνήσωμεν, ἀλλά μείνωμεν ἅπαντες ἀκοινώνητοι! ".Τούτων ἀκούσας ὁ ἄθλιος ἐγώ καί ταλαίπωρος, κατ᾿ ἰδίαν τε μνησθείς ἐκείνων αὐτῶν τῶν ταῦτα εἰπόντων καί τῶν ῥημάτων αὐτῶν καί διαπονηθείς, ἔκλαυσα πικρῶς, ἐν ὀδύνῃ