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our fathers, so that the very sight of the poor might arouse even the most sluggish and inhuman person to the remembrance of almsgiving. For when a crowd of old men stands there, bent over, clothed in rags, squalid, filthy, holding staves, barely able to stand, and often with their eyes gouged out, and their whole body crippled. who is so like a stone, who is so like adamant, as to resist and remain unyielding to all these things, when their age, and their weakness, and their disability, and their poverty, and their shabby clothing, and simply everything inclines him toward compassion? For these reasons they stand before our doors, more powerful than any speech, attracting by their appearance, calling those who enter to charity. For just as it has become customary for fountains to be in the courts of the houses of prayer, so that those who are about to pray to God, having first washed their hands, may thus lift them up in prayer; so also the fathers placed the poor before the doors instead of springs and fountains, so that, just as we wash our hands with water, we might in the same way first cleanse our soul by charity, and thus pray. 12. For the nature of water does not so wash away the stains of the body, as the power of almsgiving cleanses the filth of the soul. Just as, then, you do not dare to enter and pray with unwashed hands, although that fault is lesser, so may you never come to prayer without almsgiving. And yet, though we often have clean hands, unless we first wash them with water, we do not lift them up in prayer; so powerful is habit. Let us, therefore, do this also in the case of almsgiving; even if we are conscious of no great sin in ourselves, let us nevertheless cleanse our conscience through almsgiving. You have drawn many terrible things from the marketplace: an enemy provoked you, a judge compelled you to do something improper, you often uttered unfitting words, a friend importuned you to do something involving sin, you have contracted many other things, such as a man is likely to contract, who moves about in the marketplace, attends law courts, and conducts the business of the city; for all these things you enter to ask God for pardon and to make your defense. Cast your money, therefore, into the hands of the poor, and cleanse away those stains, so that with boldness you may call 51.301 upon the one who is able to forgive you these sins. If you establish in yourself the habit of never treading upon these sacred thresholds without almsgiving, you will never, neither willingly nor unwillingly, fail in this good work, for such is habit. And just as you always, whatever might happen, do not endure to pray with unwashed hands, since you have once established the habit; so also in the case of almsgiving, if you impose this law upon yourself, you will fulfill it each day both willingly and unwillingly, drawn by habit. Prayer is a fire, especially when it is sent up from a sober and watchful soul; but this fire also needs oil, that it may touch the very vaults of heaven; and the oil for this fire is nothing other than almsgiving. Pour on the oil abundantly, therefore, so that rejoicing in your good deed, you may perform your prayers with greater boldness and greater eagerness. For just as those who are conscious of no good in themselves cannot even pray with bold- 51.302 ness, so those who have performed some good deed, and come to prayer after that act of righteousness, rejoicing in the memory of the good deed, make their supplication with greater eagerness. Therefore, so that our prayer may be more powerful in this regard also, with our mind watchful in our petitions from the memory of our good deeds, let us come to our prayers with almsgiving, and

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πατέρες οἱ ἡμέτεροι, ἵνα καὶ τὸν νωθρότατον καὶ ἀπανθρωπότατον αὐτὴ τῶν πενήτων ἡ ὄψις πρὸς ὑπόμνησιν ἐγείρῃ τῆς ἐλεημοσύνης. Ὅταν γὰρ ἑστήκῃ χορὸς γερόντων, συγκεκυφότων, ῥάκια περιβεβλημένων, αὐχμώντων, ῥυπώντων, βακτηρίας ἐχόντων, μόλις στηρίζεσθαι δυναμένων, πολλάκις δὲ καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς ἐκκεκομμένων, καὶ τὸ σῶμα ὅλον ἀναπήρων. τίς οὕτω λίθινος, τίς οὕτως ἀδάμας, ὡς καὶ τῆς ἡλικίας, καὶ τῆς ἀσθενείας, καὶ τῆς πηρώσεως, καὶ τῆς πενίας, καὶ τῆς εὐτελοῦς στολῆς, καὶ πάντων ἁπλῶς πρὸς συμπάθειαν ἐπικλώντων αὐτὸν, ἀντιστῆναι καὶ μεῖναι πρὸς ἅπαντα ταῦτα ἀνένδοτος; ∆ιὰ ταῦτα πρὸ τῶν θυρῶν ἡμῶν ἑστήκασι παντὸς λόγου δυνατώτεροι, διὰ τῆς ὄψεως ἐπισπώμενοι, πρὸς φιλανθρωπίαν τοὺς εἰσιόντας ἐκκαλούμενοι. Καθάπερ γὰρ κρήνας εἶναι ἐν ταῖς αὐλαῖς τῶν εὐκτηρίων οἴκων νενόμισται, ἵνα οἱ μέλλοντες εὔχεσθαι τῷ Θεῷ, πρότερον ἀπονιψάμενοι τὰς χεῖρας, οὕτως αὐτὰς εἰς εὐχὴν ἀνατείνωσιν· οὕτω καὶ τοὺς πένητας ἀντὶ πηγῶν καὶ κρηνῶν ἔστησαν οἱ πατέρες πρὸ τῶν θυρῶν, ἵν', ὥσπερ ὕδατι τὰς χεῖρας ἀπονίπτομεν, οὕτω φιλανθρωπίᾳ τὴν ψυχὴν ἀποσμήχοντες πρότερον, οὕτως εὐχώμεθα. ιβʹ. Οὐδὲ γὰρ οὕτως ὕδατος φύσις ἀπονίπτει κηλῖδας σώματος, ὡς ἐλεημοσύνης δύναμις ἀποσμήχει ῥύπον ψυχῆς. Ὥσπερ οὖν οὐ τολμᾷς ἀνίπτοις χερσὶν εἰσελθὼν εὔξασθαι, καίτοι ἔλαττον τὸ ἔγκλημα ἐκεῖνο, οὕτω μήτε χωρὶς ἐλεημοσύνης ἐπ' εὐχὴν ἔλθῃς ποτέ. Καίτοι καὶ καθαρὰς πολλάκις ἔχοντες τὰς χεῖρας, ἂν μὴ πρότερον αὐτὰς ἀποπλύνωμεν ὕδατι, οὐκ ἀνατείνομεν εἰς εὐχήν· τοσοῦτόν ἐστιν ἡ συνήθεια. Τοῦτο τοίνυν καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς ἐλεημοσύνης ποιῶμεν· κἂν μηδὲν ἑαυτοῖς ὦμεν συνειδότες μέγα ἁμάρτημα, ὅμως ἀποσμήχωμεν τὸ συνειδὸς διὰ τῆς ἐλεημοσύνης. Πολλὰ ἀπὸ τῆς ἀγορᾶς ἐπεσπάσω δεινά· ἐχθρὸς παρώξυνε, δικαστὴς ἠνάγκασέ τι ποιῆσαι τῶν οὐ προσηκόντων πραγμάτων, ῥήματα πολλάκις ἐξέβαλες ἄτοπα, φίλος ἐδυσώπησεν ἐργάσασθαί τι τῶν ἁμαρτίαν ἐχόντων, ἕτερα προσετρίψω πολλὰ, οἷα εἰκὸς ἄνθρωπον ὄντα προστρίβεσθαι, ἐν ἀγορᾷ στρεφόμενον, δικαστηρίοις προσεδρεύοντα, τὰ τῆς πόλεως πράττοντα πράγματα· ὑπὲρ τούτων ἁπάντων εἰσέρχῃ τὸν Θεὸν αἰτήσων συγγνώμην καὶ ἀπολογησόμενος. Κατάβαλε τοίνυν ἀργύριον εἰς τὰς τῶν πενήτων χεῖρας, καὶ ἀπόσμηξον τὰς κηλῖδας ἐκείνας, ἵνα μετὰ παῤῥησίας καλέσῃς 51.301 αἰτούμενος τὸν δυνάμενόν σοι ταῦτα ἀφεῖναι τὰ ἁμαρτήματα. Ἂν ἐν συνηθείᾳ καταστήσῃς σαυτὸν μηδέποτε χωρὶς ἐλεημοσύνης τῶν ἱερῶν τούτων προθύρων ἐπιβαίνειν, οὐδέποτε, οὔτε ἑκὼν, οὔτε ἄκων, ὑστερήσεις τῆς καλῆς ταύτης ἐργασίας, τοιοῦτον γὰρ ἡ συνήθεια. Καὶ ὥσπερ οὖν ἀεὶ, ὅ τι οὖν γένοιτο, χερσὶν ἀνίπτοις οὐχ ὑπομένεις εὔξασθαι, ἐπειδὴ κατέστης εἰς συνήθειαν ἅπαξ· οὕτω καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς ἐλεημοσύνης, ἂν τοῦτον σαυτῷ ἐπιθήσῃς τὸν νόμον, καὶ ἑκὼν καὶ ἄκων αὐτὸν καθ' ἑκάστην ἐκπληρώσεις ἡμέραν ὑπὸ τῆς συνηθείας ἑλκόμενος. Πῦρ ἐστιν ἡ εὐχὴ, μάλιστα ὅταν ἀπὸ νηφούσης καὶ διεγηγερμένης ἀναπέμπηται ψυχῆς· ἀλλὰ τὸ πῦρ τοῦτο καὶ ἐλαίου δεῖται, ἵνα αὐτῶν ἅψηται τῶν οὐρανίων ἁψίδων· ἔλαιον δὲ τοῦ πυρὸς τούτου οὐδὲν ἕτερόν ἐστιν, ἀλλ' ἢ ἐλεημοσύνη. Ἐπίχεε τοίνυν τὸ ἔλαιον δαψιλὲς, ἵνα εὐφραινόμενος ἐπὶ τῷ κατορθώματι, μετὰ παῤῥησίας πλείονος καὶ προθυμίας μείζονος τὰς εὐχάς σου ἐπιτελῇς. Ὥσπερ γὰρ οἱ μηδὲν ἑαυτοῖς συνειδότες ἀγαθὸν, οὐδὲ εὔξασθαι μετὰ παῤ 51.302 ῥησίας δύνανται, οὕτως οἱ κατορθώσαντές τι, καὶ μετὰ τὴν δικαιοσύνην ἐκείνην ἐπὶ τὴν εὐχὴν ἐρχόμενοι, τῇ μνήμῃ τοῦ κατορθώματος εὐφραινόμενοι, μετὰ πλείονος τῆς προθυμίας ποιοῦνται τὴν ἱκετηρίαν. Ἵν' οὖν καὶ κατὰ τοῦτο δυνατωτέρα ἡμῖν ἡ εὐχὴ γένηται, γρηγορούσης ἡμῖν τῆς διανοίας ἐν ταῖς δεήσεσιν ἀπὸ τῆς τῶν κατορθωμάτων μνήμης, μετὰ τῆς ἐλεημοσύνης ἐπὶ τὰς εὐχὰς ἐρχώμεθα, καὶ