the Spirit hierarchically confers the source-of-perfection consecrating rite, commanding the disciples, as the oracles say: “Not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which you have heard from me, for you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” And indeed the very chief of the disciples, with the ten of his same and hierarchical order, having proceeded to the priestly consecration of the twelfth disciple, reverently left the election to the Thearchy, saying, “Show which one you have chosen,” and received him who was divinely indicated by the divine lot into the hierarchical number of the holy twelve. But concerning the divine lot that divinely fell upon Matthias, others have said other things, not piously as I think, but I myself will state my own understanding. For it seems to me that the oracles name as ‘lot’ a certain Thearchic gift, indicating to that hierarchical choir the one shown forth by the divine election, except that the divine hierarch must not perform the priestly rites of his own motion, but under God who moves him, to perform them hierarchically and celestially. 6 But the kiss at the end of the priestly consecration has a sacred significance. For all who are present, being of the priestly orders, and also the consecrating hierarch himself, kiss the one who has been consecrated. For when a sacred mind arrives at the priestly rite with priestly states and powers and a divine calling and sanctification, he is beloved by the orders of the same rank and most holy, having been raised to the most Godlike beauty, loving the like-formed minds and being sacredly loved in return by them. Hence the priestly kiss to one another is sacredly performed, signifying the sacred communion of like-formed minds and the loving joy in one another, as they wholly preserve in priestly formation the most Godlike beauty. 7 These things, then, as I have said, are the common elements of the whole priestly consecration. But the hierarch has the distinct, most holy placing of the oracles upon his head. For since the perfecting power and knowledge of the entire priesthood is bestowed on the divine hierarchs by the Thearchic and source-of-perfection goodness, with good reason the God-delivered oracles are placed upon the heads of the hierarchs, which reveal comprehensively and with knowledge all theology, theurgy, theophany, sacred discourse, sacred action, in a word, all divine and sacred works and words which have been given by the good-working Thearchy to our hierarchy, so that the Godlike hierarch may wholly partake of all hierarchical power, and not only be illuminated with the true and God-delivered knowledge of all hierarchical sacred discourses and sacred actions, but may also impart it to others in their hierarchical proportions and may perform, in most divine knowledge and highest elevations, hierarchically, all the most perfecting things of the whole hierarchy. For the priests, the bending of both feet is distinct from the liturgical order, as that order bends one, and is consecrated in this hierarchical posture. 8 The bending, then, signifies the submissive approach of the one who approaches, placing under God what is sacredly brought forward. But since, as we have often said, the three orders of the consecrators, through the three most holy rites and powers, preside over the three orders of the consecrated and sacredly perform their saving approach under the divine yokes, with good reason the liturgical order, as being only purifying, performs the one approach of those who are being purified, placing it under the divine altar as in it the minds of those being purified are supercosmically consecrated; but the priests bend both feet, as those sacredly brought forward by them are not only purified, but also, by their most illuminating sacred rites, are sacredly perfected from a purified life, in an anagogical way, to a contemplative state and power; but the hierarch, bending both feet, has the God-delivered oracles upon his head, hierarchically leading those who have been purified by the liturgical power and illuminated by the sacramental power to the knowledge, proportionate to them, of the sacred things they have contemplated, and through it perfecting those who are brought forward into their own complete dedication.

πνεῦμα τὴν τελεταρχικὴν ἀνατίθησιν ἱεραρχικῶς τελεσιουργίαν παραγγέλλων τοῖς μαθηταῖς, ὡς τὰ λόγιά φησιν· «Ἀπὸ Ἱεροσολύμων μὴ χωρίζεσθαι, ἀλλὰ περιμένειν τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν τοῦ πατρός, ἣν ἠκούσατέ μου, ὅτι ὑμεῖς βαπτισθήσεσθε ἐν πνεύματι ἁγίῳ.» Καὶ μὴν καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ τῶν μαθητῶν κορυφαῖος μετὰ τῆς ὁμοταγοῦς αὐτῷ καὶ ἱεραρχικῆς δεκάδος εἰς τὴν τοῦ δυοκαιδεκάτου τῶν μαθητῶν ἐληλυθὼς ἱερατικὴν τελείωσιν ἐπὶ τῇ θεαρχίᾳ τὴν ἐκλογὴν εὐλαβῶς καταλέλοιπεν «Ἀνάδειξον» φήσας «ὃν ἐξελέξω» καὶ τὸν ὑπὸ τοῦ θείου κλήρου θειωδῶς ἀναδεδειγμένον εἰς τὸν τῆς ἁγίας δυοκαιδεκάδος ἱεραρχικὸν ἀριθμὸν εἰσ εδέξατο. Περὶ δὲ τοῦ θείου κλήρου τοῦ τῷ Ματθίᾳ θειωδῶς ἐπιπεσόντος ἕτεροι μὲν ἄλλα εἰρήκασιν οὐκ εὐαγῶς ὡς οἶμαι, τὴν ἐμὴν δὲ καὶ αὐτὸς ἔννοιαν ἐρῶ. ∆οκεῖ γάρ μοι τὰ λόγια κλῆρον ὀνομάσαι θεαρχικόν τι δῶρον ὑποδηλοῦν ἐκείνῳ τῷ ἱεραρχικῷ χορῷ τὸν ὑπὸ τῆς θείας ἐκλογῆς ἀναδεδειγμένον, πλήν γε ὅτι τὸν θεῖον ἱεράρχην οὐκ αὐτοκινήτως χρὴ τὰς ἱερατικὰς ποιεῖσθαι τελεσιουργίας, ἀλλ' ὑπὸ θεῷ κινοῦντι ταύτας ἱεραρχικῶς καὶ οὐρανίως τελεσιουργεῖν. <6> Ὁ δὲ πρὸς τῷ τέλει τῆς ἱερατικῆς τελειώσεως ἀσπασμὸς ἱερὰν ἔμφασιν ἔχει. Πάντες γὰρ ὅσοι πάρεισι τῶν ἱερατικῶν ὄντες τάξεων, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ τελέσας ἱεράρχης ἀσπάζονται τὸν τετελεσμένον. Ὅταν γὰρ ἱερατικαῖς ἕξεσι καὶ δυνάμεσι καὶ θείᾳ κλήσει καὶ ἁγιαστείᾳ πρὸς ἱερατικὴν τελεσιουργίαν ἀφίκηται νοῦς ἱερός, ἐραστός ἐστι ταῖς ὁμοταγέσι καὶ ἱερωτάταις τάξεσιν εἰς τὸ θεοειδέστατον ἀνηγμένος κάλλος ἐρῶν τῶν ὁμοειδῶν νοῶν καὶ πρὸς αὐτῶν ἱερῶς ἀντερώμενος. Ἔνθεν ὁ πρὸς ἀλλήλους ἱερατικὸς ἀσπασμὸς ἱερουργεῖται τὴν τῶν ὁμοειδῶν νοῶν ἱερὰν κοινωνίαν ὑποδηλῶν καὶ τὴν ἐπ' ἀλλήλοις ἐραστὴν εὐφροσύνην ὡς ὁλοκλήρως ἀποσώζουσιν ἱερατικῇ μορφώσει τὸ θεοειδέστατον κάλλος. <7> Ταῦτα μὲν οὖν ὡς ἔφην ἐστὶ τὰ κοινὰ τῆς ὅλης ἱερατικῆς τελειώσεως. Ὁ δὲ ἱεράρχης ἔκκριτον ἔχει τὴν τῶν λογίων ἐπὶ κεφαλῆς ἱερωτάτην ἐπίθεσιν. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἡ τελειωτικὴ τῆς πάσης ἱερατείας δύναμις καὶ ἐπιστήμη τοῖς ἐνθέοις ἱεράρχαις ὑπὸ τῆς θεαρχικῆς δωρεῖται καὶ τελεταρχικῆς ἀγαθότητος, εἰκότως ἐπὶ τῶν ἱεραρχικῶν κεφαλῶν ἐπιτίθεται τὰ θεοπαράδοτα λόγια τὰ περιεκτικῶς καὶ ἐπιστημόνως ἐκφαντορικὰ πάσης θεολογίας θεουργίας θεοφανείας ἱερολογίας ἱερουργίας, ἑνὶ λόγῳ πάντων τῶν θείων καὶ ἱερῶν ἔργων τε καὶ λόγων τῶν ὑπὸ τῆς ἀγαθουργοῦ θεαρχίας τῇ καθ' ἡμᾶς ἱεραρχίᾳ δεδωρημένων, ὡς τοῦ θεοειδοῦς ἱεράρχου πάσης μὲν ἱεραρχικῆς δυνάμεως ὁλοκλήρως μεθέξοντος, πασῶν δὲ τῶν ἱεραρχικῶν ἱερολογιῶν τε καὶ ἱερουργιῶν τὴν ἀληθῆ καὶ θεοπαράδοτον ἐπιστήμην οὐκ ἐλλαμφθησομένου μόνον ἀλλὰ καὶ ἑτέροις ἀναλογίαις ἱεραρχικαῖς μεταδώσοντος καὶ τελεσιουργήσοντος ἐν θειοτάταις γνώσεσι καὶ ἀκροτάταις ἀναγωγαῖς ἱεραρχικῶς ἅπαντα τὰ τῆς ὅλης ἱεραρχίας τελεστικώτατα. Τοῖς δὲ ἱερεῦσι τοῖν δυοῖν ποδοῖν ἡ κλίσις ἔκκριτόν ἐστι παρὰ τὴν λειτουργικὴν διακόσμησιν ὡς τὸν ἕνα κλινούσης ἐκείνης καὶ τούτῳ τῷ ἱεραρχικῷ σχήματι τελειουμένης. <8> Ἡ μὲν οὖν κλίσις ἐμφαίνει τὴν ὑποκειμένην προσαγωγὴν τοῦ προσάγοντος ὑποτιθέντος θεῷ τὸ ἱερῶς προσαγόμενον. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ ὡς πολλάκις εἰρήκαμεν αἱ τρεῖς τῶν ἱεροτελεστῶν διακοσμήσεις διὰ τῶν τριῶν ἁγιωτάτων τελετῶν καὶ δυνάμεων ἐφεστᾶσι ταῖς τρισὶ τῶν τελουμένων τάξεσι καὶ τὴν ὑπὸ τὰ θεῖα ζυγὰ σωστικὴν αὐτῶν ἱερουργοῦσι προσαγωγήν, εἰκότως ἡ λειτουργικὴ τάξις ὡς μόνον καθαρτικὴ τὴν μίαν ἱερουργεῖ τῶν καθαιρομένων προσαγωγὴν ὑπὸ τὸ θεῖον αὐτὴν ὑποτιθεῖσα θυσιαστήριον ὡς ἐν αὐτῷ τῶν καθαιρομένων νοῶν ὑπερκοσμίως ἱερουμένων, οἱ δὲ ἱερεῖς ἄμφω τὼ πόδε κλίνουσι ὡς τῶν ὑπ' αὐτῶν ἱερῶς προσαγομένων οὐ μόνον κεκαθαρμένων, ἀλλὰ καὶ ταῖς φανοτάταις αὐτῶν ἱερουργίαις ἀναγωγικῶς ἀποκεκαθαρμένης ζωῆς εἰς θεωρητικὴν ἕξιν καὶ δύναμιν ἱερουργικῶς ἀποτελεσθέντων, ὁ δὲ ἱεράρχης ἄμφω τὼ πόδε κλίνων ἐπὶ κεφαλῆς ἔχει τὰ θεοπαράδοτα λόγια τοὺς ὑπὸ τῆς λειτουργικῆς δυνάμεως ἐκκεκαθαρμένους καὶ πρὸς τῆς ἱερουργοῦ πεφωτισμένους πρὸς τὴν τῶν ἐποπτευθέντων ὑπ' αὐτῶν ἱερῶν ἀνάλογον αὐτοῖς ἐπιστήμην ἱεραρχικῶς ἄγων καὶ δι' αὐτῆς ἀποτελειῶν τοὺς προσαγομένους εἰς τὴν κατ' αὐτοὺς ὁλόκληρον ἀφιέρωσιν.