23

but they themselves punished the incorrigible; or if not this, because they were more terrifying by handing them over to others. Thus also Job was delivered to Satan; but he, not for sins, but for greater approbation. 3. Many such things happen now also. For since the priests do not know all the sinners and those who partake of the mysteries unworthily, God often does this, and delivers them to Satan. For when sicknesses, when plots, when sorrows and calamities occur, when other such things happen, it is for this reason. And this Paul makes clear, saying thus: For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. And how, he says, when we approach once a year? For this is the terrible thing, that you determine the worthiness of your approach not by purity of mind, but by an interval of time, and you think this to be piety, not to approach often, not knowing that to approach unworthily, even if it happens once, has defiled; but to approach worthily, even if often, has saved. It is not boldness to approach often, but to do so unworthily, even if one should approach but once in all his life. But we are so foolishly and miserably disposed, that while working countless evils throughout the year, we take no care to put them off, but think it is enough not to be continually daring and insolently leaping upon the body of Christ, not considering that even those who crucified Christ crucified him once. Was the sin, therefore, less because it was once? And Judas also betrayed him once; what then? Did this deliver him? For why do we measure the matter by time? Let our time of approach be a clean conscience. The mystery at Pascha has nothing more than that which is now celebrated; it is one 62.530 and the same, the same grace of the Spirit; it is always Pascha. You who are initiated know what has been said. And on Friday, and on Saturday, and on Sunday, and on a martyr's day the same sacrifice is performed. For as often, he says, as you eat this bread, or drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death. He did not limit the sacrifice by a boundary of time. How then, he says, is it called Pascha at that time? Because then Christ suffered for us. Let no one, therefore, approach that one differently, and this one otherwise; there is one power, one worthiness, one grace, one and the same body, not that one holier than this, nor this one less than that one. And you know this yourselves, seeing nothing newer, except for these worldly veils and the splendid crowd. But those days have this advantage, that from them our saving day took its beginning, that on it Christ was sacrificed, but otherwise according to the mysteries they have no pre-eminence. And when partaking of sensible food, you wash your hands, you rinse your mouth; but when about to approach spiritual food, you do not wash your soul, but come full of uncleanness? And what, he says? Are not the fasts of the forty days sufficient to cleanse the great filth of sins? And what is the benefit, tell me? If someone wishing to store perfume cleans the place, then again a little after putting it in also throws in dung, has the fragrance not flown away? This happens to us also; we became worthy by approaching according to our ability; then again we defile ourselves. What then is the gain? This we say also concerning those who are able to wash themselves in the forty days. Let us not then neglect our salvation, I beseech you, so that our labor may not become empty. For a man, he says, turning from his sin, and going again, and doing the same things, is like a dog returning to its own vomit. If we do so, and so take heed, we shall be able to be counted worthy of those rewards; which may it be granted to us all to attain, by the grace and love for mankind of our Lord Jesus Christ, with whom to the Father together with the Holy Spirit be glory, dominion, honor, now and ever,

23

τοὺς δὲ ἀδιορθώτους αὐτοὶ ἐτιμωροῦντο· ἢ εἰ μὴ τοῦτο, ὅτι φοβερώτεροι μᾶλλον ἦσαν ἑτέροις ἐκδιδόντες αὐτούς. Οὕτω καὶ ὁ Ἰὼβ παρεδόθη τῷ Σατανᾷ· ἀλλ' ἐκεῖνος οὐχ ὑπὲρ ἁμαρτημάτων, ἀλλ' ὑπὲρ πλείονος εὐδοκιμήσεως. γʹ. Πολλὰ τοιαῦτα γίνεται καὶ νῦν. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ οἱ ἱερεῖς οὐ πάντας ἴσασι τοὺς ἁμαρτωλοὺς καὶ ἀναξίως τῶν μυστηρίων μετέχοντας, ὁ Θεὸς πολλάκις τοῦτο ποιεῖ, καὶ παραδίδωσιν αὐτοὺς τῷ Σατανᾷ. Ὅταν γὰρ νόσοι, ὅταν ἐπιβουλαὶ, ὅταν πένθη καὶ συμφοραὶ συμβαίνωσιν, ὅταν ἄλλα τινὰ τοιαῦτα, διὰ τοῦτο γίνεται. Καὶ τοῦτο ὁ Παῦλος δηλοῖ, οὕτω λέγων· ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ἐν ὑμῖν πολλοὶ ἀσθενεῖς καὶ ἄῤῥωστοι, καὶ κοιμῶνται ἱκανοί. Καὶ πῶς, φησὶν, ὅταν ἅπαξ δι' ἐνιαυτοῦ προσερχώμεθα; Τοῦτο γὰρ τὸ δεινὸν, ὅτι οὐ καθαρότητι διανοίας, ἀλλὰ διαστήματι χρόνου τὴν ἀξίαν διορίζεις τῆς προσόδου, καὶ τοῦτο εὐλάβειαν εἶναι νομίζεις, τὸ μὴ πολλάκις προσελθεῖν, οὐκ εἰδὼς ὅτι τὸ ἀναξίως προσελθεῖν, κἂν ἅπαξ γένηται, ἐκηλίδωσε· τὸ δὲ ἀξίως, κἂν πολλάκις, ἔσωσεν. Οὐκ ἔστι τόλμα τὸ πολλάκις προσιέναι, ἀλλὰ τὸ ἀναξίως, κἂν ἅπαξ τις τοῦ παντὸς χρόνου προσέλθῃ. Ἡμεῖς δὲ οὕτως ἀνοήτως διακείμεθα καὶ ἀθλίως, ὅτι μυρία διαπαντὸς ἐργαζόμενοι τοῦ ἐνιαυτοῦ κακὰ, τοῦ μὲν ἀποδύσασθαι ἐκεῖνα οὐδεμίαν ποιούμεθα φροντίδα, νομίζομεν δὲ ἀρκεῖν τὸ μὴ συνεχῶς κατατολμᾷν καὶ ἐπιπηδᾷν ὑβριστικῶς τῷ σώματι τοῦ Χριστοῦ, οὐκ ἐννοοῦντες ὅτι καὶ οἱ τὸν Χριστὸν σταυρώσαντες ἅπαξ ἐσταύρωσαν. Ἆρ' οὖν, ἐπειδὴ ἅπαξ, ἔλαττον τὸ ἁμάρτημα; Καὶ ὁ Ἰούδας δὲ ἅπαξ προέδωκε· τί οὖν; τοῦτο αὐτὸν ἐξείλετο; ∆ιὰ τί γὰρ χρόνῳ τὸ πρᾶγμα μετερχόμεθα; χρόνος προσόδου ἔστω ἡμῖν τὸ καθαρὸν συνειδός. Οὐδὲν πλέον ἔχει τὸ ἐν τῷ Πάσχα μυστήριον τοῦ νῦν τελουμένου· ἕν ἐστι 62.530 καὶ τὸ αὐτὸ, ἡ αὐτὴ τοῦ Πνεύματος χάρις· ἀεὶ Πάσχα ἐστίν. Ἴστε οἱ μύσται τὸ εἰρημένον. Καὶ ἐν Παρασκευῇ, καὶ ἐν Σαββάτῳ, καὶ ἐν Κυριακῇ, καὶ ἐν ἡμέρᾳ μαρτύρων ἡ αὐτὴ θυσία ἐπιτελεῖται. Ὁσάκις γὰρ ἂν ἐσθίητε τὸν ἄρτον, φησὶ, τοῦτον, ἢ τὸ ποτήριον τοῦτο πίνητε, τὸν θάνατον τοῦ Κυρίου καταγγέλλετε. Οὐχ ὅρῳ καιροῦ περιέγραψε τὴν θυσίαν. Πῶς οὖν τότε, φησὶ, Πάσχα λέγεται; Ὅτι τότε ἔπαθεν ὁ Χριστὸς ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν. Μηδεὶς τοίνυν ἑτέρως ἐκείνῳ προσίτω, καὶ τούτῳ ἄλλως· μία δύναμίς ἐστι, μία ἀξία, μία χάρις, ἓν σῶμα καὶ τὸ αὐτὸ, οὐκ ἐκεῖνο τούτου ἁγιώτερον, οὐδὲ τοῦτο ἐκείνου ἔλαττον. Καὶ τοῦτο καὶ ὑμεῖς ἴστε, οὐδὲν καινότερον ὁρῶντες, πλὴν τῶν κοσμικῶν τούτων παραπετασμάτων καὶ τοῦ λαμπροῦ πλήθους. Ἔχουσι δέ τι πλέον αἱ ἡμέραι ἐκεῖναι τοῦτο, ὅτι ἀπ' αὐτῶν ἀρχὴν ἔλαβεν ἡ σωτήριος ἡμῶν ἡμέρα, ὅτι ἐν αὐτῇ ἐτύθη ὁ Χριστὸς, λοιπὸν δὲ κατὰ τὰ μυστήρια οὐδεμίαν προτέρησιν ἔχουσι. Καὶ τροφῇ μὲν προσβάλλων αἰσθητῇ, νίπτεις τὰς χεῖρας, πλύνεις τὸ στόμα· τροφῇ δὲ μέλλων προσιέναι πνευματικῇ, οὐ νίπτεις τὴν ψυχὴν, ἀλλὰ γέμων ἀκαθαρσίας προσέρχῃ; Καὶ τί, φησίν; οὐκ ἀρκοῦσιν αἱ τῶν τεσσαράκοντα ἡμερῶν νηστεῖαι τὸν πολὺν φορυτὸν καθᾶραι τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων; Καὶ τί τὸ ὄφελος, εἰπέ μοι; ἄν τις μύρον ἀποθέσθαι θέλων καθάρῃ τὸν τόπον, εἶτα πάλιν μικρὸν μετὰ τὸ ἐμβαλεῖν καὶ κόπρον ἐπιβάλῃ, οὐκ ἀπέπτη ἡ εὐωδία; Τοῦτο γίνεται καὶ ἡμῖν· ἐγενόμεθα ἄξιοι προσερχόμενοι κατὰ δύναμιν τὴν ἡμετέραν· εἶτα πάλιν μολύνομεν ἑαυτούς. Τί οὖν τὸ κέρδος; Τοῦτο καὶ περὶ τῶν δυναμένων ἐν ταῖς τεσσαράκοντα ἡμέραις ἀπονίπτεσθαί φαμεν. Μὴ δὴ ἀμελῶμεν τῆς ἡμετέρας σωτηρίας, παρακαλῶ, ἵνα μὴ γένηται κενὸς ὁ κόπος ἡμῶν. Ἄνθρωπος γὰρ, φησὶν, ἀποστρέφων ἀπὸ ἁμαρτίας αὐτοῦ, καὶ πάλιν πορευόμενος, καὶ τὰ αὐτὰ ποιῶν, Ὥσπερ κύων ἐστὶν εἰς τὸν ἴδιον ἔμετον ἐπιστρέφων. Ἂν οὕτω ποιῶμεν, καὶ οὕτω προσέχωμεν, δυνησόμεθα τῶν βραβείων ἀξιωθῆναι ἐκείνων· ὧν γένοιτο πάντας ἡμᾶς ἐπιτυχεῖν, χάριτι καὶ φιλανθρωπίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, μεθ' οὗ τῷ Πατρὶ ἅμα τῷ ἁγίῳ Πνεύματι δόξα, κράτος, τιμὴ, νῦν καὶ ἀεὶ,