Gregory of Nazianzus, The Passion of Christ

And I hear the friendly initiates, remaining shut inside the gates, certainly still trembling at the blood-stained ones; and the locks of the gates remain secured. But how might we enter, with the doors having been shut? But already she heard, and friendly Mary opens slightly, and calls us to come in. But let us enter with quiet footstep, so that we may not disturb the frightened friends. Behold, we have gathered with the eleven friends and with all the others who were gathering with them; and again Mary secures the gates. Therefore let us listen in silence to Cleopas himself; for he is present, as I see, and he tells much of what the Lord both said and did to them, and how they recognized him in the breaking of the bread. Ah, ah; silence, silence; behold, the Lord stands within the doors; truly this is worthy of the greatest wonder. How, how is he present, with the doors having been shut? Perhaps as he also rose from the closed tomb and before came forth from the gates of the virgin, preserving unbroken the locks of his all-holy mother. {ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ} Peace to you. Why are you troubled? Behold my hands and feet and my own pierced side. Having seen them clearly, know that it is I myself again; for a spirit does not have flesh, nor bones with a spirit, as you now see me having. And having touched me, see that I have all things. And as the Father has sent me here, so I also send you into the world and breathe the Holy Spirit into you, my friends, which having received, proclaim me to everyone with the Father and the all-holy Spirit. Go therefore, go, friendly heralds, sing songs of victory throughout all the earth, and running around the royal houses, you shall say, so that all the city of David may see the salvation most swiftly rising from the tomb. You shall be my witnesses in all the earth; and he will save himself, who having received the word embraces baptism, a deliverance from defilement; but whoever should reject your words, he, as an unbeliever, shall fall into condemnation. For which I give the grace of the divine Spirit; and whosever's bond of transgressions you loose, he shall then be found loosed from bonds; and whosever's bond of sins you retain, he will remain held by unbreakable bonds. From such unbreakable bonds, O All-ruler, being yourself the freer from bonds, O Savior, loose me, with which, alas, inattention has bound me; and the deceiving enemy has weighed me down with envy, seeing me loosed from the formerly unbreakable bonds by faith in you, a most good gift. Hail, noble Son of the noble, King all-ruler, having trampled down the serpent, the author of evil, and having cast down the final enemy, fate; by which do not let me be mastered again. O Lord, immortal Lord, you are the great God, and you come as an all-just judge to judge me; how then shall I behold you then, O Word? and with what kind of eyes shall I gaze upon your throne, having shown myself, wretched one, unworthy of both heaven and earth and of your creation? The enemy has seized me, has brought me down into a pit, into Tartarus, into a great chaos; fiercely pursuing, the deceiver overtook me, he has cast me down whole into the gloom of Hades. Have mercy, O God, stretch out your hand, bear me up and do not allow me to be a joy to the murderer of men. I am your creation, you instruct me, O Word, and strike me yourself with loving-kindness here and do not abandon me to be sent to Gehenna. O Deliverer, we beseech you, we have wronged you wretchedly in body and soul and mind; we have sinned against you and transgressed much. We learned late, not knowing when we ought to, and not even since then have we done the things that are pleasing to you. We know our faults, but you, overlook them; and we know that your wrath is not like that of mortals. Pity me, O Savior, and do not leave me to be destroyed by my own transgressions. For I am your child and the child of your handmaiden, and for my sake you underwent your fate, O Word, and do not leave me as a joy to the enemy, but discipline me with your rod, yet with loving-kindness. Receive your mother as an intercessor, O Word, and those to whom you have given your grace that looses bonds. O mistress, mistress, all-blessed Virgin, you dwell in the heavenly vault, the floor of the blessed, having changed all mortal grossness and being arrayed in the garment of incorruptibility and ever ageless and recognized as divine; be gracious from on high to my words. Yea, yea, all-glorious Maiden, receive these words; for this alone is the honor to you from mortals, as to you, the mother of the Word, even if it is beyond reason. Wherefore, trusting, I address you in words and to you a crown woven from an undefiled meadow, O lady, having adorned

καὶ φίλους μύστας κλύω, ἐντὸς πυλῶν μένοντας ἐγκεκλεισμένους, πάντως τρέμοντας τοὺς μιαιφόνους ἔτι· καὶ κλεῖθρα πυλῶν ἠσφαλισμένα μένει. Πῶς δ' εἰσίωμεν, τῶν θυρῶν κεκλεισμένων; Ἤδη δ' ἔκλυεν, ὑπανοίγει τ' ἠρέμα Μαρία φίλη, συγκαλεῖ τ' εἰσιέναι. Ἀλλ' εἰσίωμεν ἡσύχῳ ποδὸς βάσει, ὡς μὴ θορυβήσωμεν ἐμφόβους φίλους. Ἰδοὺ συνηθροίσθημεν ἕνδεκα φίλοις ἄλλοις τε πᾶσι τοῖς συνιοῦσι σφίσιν· αὖθις δὲ πύλας ἀσφαλίζει Μαρία. Οὐκοῦν σῖγα κλύωμεν αὐτοῦ Κλεόπα· πάρεστι καὶ γάρ, ὡς ὁρῶ, καὶ πόλλ' ᾄδει τὸν ∆εσπότην φῆναί τε καὶ δρᾶσαι σφίσιν, ὅπως τέ μιν συνῆκαν ἄρτου τῇ κλάσει. Ἂ ἄ· σίγα, σίγα· ἕστηκεν ἰδοὺ ∆εσπότης θυρῶν ἔσω· ὄντως μεγίστου θαύματος τόδ' ἄξιον. Πῶς πῶς πάρεστι, τῶν θυρῶν κεκλεισμένων; τάχ' ὡς ἀνέστη καὶ τάφου κεκλεισμένου καὶ πρὶν προῆλθεν ἐκ πυλῶν τῆς παρθένου, ἄλυτα τηρῶν κλεῖθρα μητρὸς πανάγνου. {ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ} Εἰρήνη ὑμῖν. Τί δὴ θροεῖσθε; χεῖρας ἰδοὺ καὶ πόδας αὐτήν τε πλευρὰν τὴν ἐμὴν νενυγμένην τρανῶς ἰδόντες, γνῶτέ μ' ὡς ἐγὼ πάλιν εἴμ' αὐτός· οὐ γὰρ πνεῦμα σάρκα πως ἔχει, οὐδ' ὀστέα ξύνεστι τῷ πνεύματί που, καθάπερ αὐτὸν νῦν ὁρᾶτ' ἔχοντά με, καὶ ψηλαφήσαντές μ' ἴδεθ' ὡς πάντ' ἔχω. Καθὼς δ' ὁ Πατὴρ ἐνθάδ' ἀπέσταλκέ με, οὕτως ὑμᾶς πρὸς κόσμον ἐκπέμπω κἀγὼ καὶ Πνεῦμ' ἅγιον ἐμπνέω φίλοις ὑμῖν, ὅπερ λαβόντες παντὶ κηρύξατέ με σὺν Πατρὶ καὶ Πνεύματι τῷ παναγίῳ. Ἄπιτε γοῦν, ἄπιτε, κήρυκες φίλοι, ᾄσατ' ἐπινίκι' ἀνὰ πᾶσαν χθόνα, καὶ βασιλείους ἀμφιδραμόντες δόμους, ἐρεῖτε, ∆αυΐδου πόλις πᾶσ' ὡς ἴδῃ σωτήριον τάχιστ' ἀνιὸν ἐκ τάφου. Ἔσεσθέ μοι μάρτυρες ἐν πάσῃ χθονί· σώσει δ' ἑαυτόν, ὃς λόγον δεδεγμένος ἀσπάσεται βάπτισμα, ῥύσιον λύθρου· ὃς δ' ἀποδιώξειε τοὺς ὑμῶν λόγους, ὅδ' ὡς ἄπιστος ἐμπέσῃ κατακρίσει. Ἐφ' ᾧ δίδωμι Πνεύματος θείου χάριν· οὗ δ' ἂν λύσητε δεσμὸν ἀμπλακημάτων, καὶ δεσμόλυτος εὑρεθήσεται τότε· οὗ δ' ἂν κρατῆτε δεσμὸν ἁμαρτημάτων, δεσμοῖς ἀλύτοις κεκρατημένος μενεῖ. Τοιῶνδε δεσμῶν ἀλύτων με, Παντάναξ, ὁ δεσμολύτης αὐτὸς ὤν, Σῶτερ, λύσον, οἷς, φεῦ, με κατέδησεν ἀπροσεξία· ἐχθρός θ' ὁ πλάνος κατεβάρυνε φθόνῳ, ὁρῶν με τῶν πρὶν ἀλύτων λελυμένον τῇ πρὸς σὲ πίστει, δωρεᾷ φιλαγάθῳ. Χαῖρ', ἐσθλὸς ἐσθλοῦ Παῖ, Βασιλεῦ παντάναξ, τὸν ἀρχέκακον καταπατήσας ὄφιν, ἔσχατον ἐχθρὸν καββαλών τε τὸν πότμον· οἷς μή μ' ἐάσῃς κυριευθῆναι πάλιν. Ἄναξ Ἄναξ ἄφθιτε, σὺ Θεὸς μέγας, κριτής τε πανένδικος ἔρχῃ με κρίνων· πῶς γοῦν ἐγώ σε τῷ τότ' ἀθρήσω, Λόγε; ὄμμασί θ' οἵοις ἀτενίσω σὸν θρόνον, ἐμαυτὸν ἀνάξιον ἐνδείξας τάλας πόλου τε καὶ γῆς σῆς τε δημιουργίας; Ὁ δυσμενὴς ἥρπασε, κατήγαγέ με εἰς βόθρον, εἰς τάρταρον, εἰς χάος μέγα· σφοδρῶς διώξας κατέλαβέ μ' ὁ πλάνος, ὅλον με κατέπτωσεν εἰς ᾅδου ζόφον. Ἔλεε, Θεέ, νέμε χέρε, φέρε με καὶ μή μ' ἐάσῃς χάρμα τῷ βροτοκτόνῳ. Σόν εἰμι πλάσμα, σύ με παίδευσον, Λόγε, καὶ πλῆξον αὐτὸς φιλαγάθως ἐνθάδε καὶ μὴ γεέννῃ παραπεμφθῆναι λίπῃς. Ῥύσιε, λισσόμεσθά σ', ἠδικήκαμεν καὶ σῶμα καὶ ψυχή τε καὶ νοῦς ἀθλίως· ἡμάρτομέν σοι πολλά τ' ἠνομήσαμεν. Ὄψ' ἐμάθομεν, ὅτ' ἐχρῆν οὐκ εἰδότες, κοὐδ' ἔκτοτ' ἐδράσαμεν, ἅπερ σοι φίλα. Γινώσκομεν σφάλματα, σὺ δὲ παρόρα· ἴδμεν δέ σ' ὀργὰν οὐχ ὁμοιοῦσθαι βροτοῖς. Οἴκτειρον ὦ Σῶτέρ με, μηδὲ ταῖς ἐμαῖς ἀμπλακίαισιν ἀπολέσθαι καλλίπῃς. Παῖς γὰρ ἐγὼ σὸς παῖς τε παιδίσκης σέθεν, ἐμοῦ δ' ἕκητι πότμον ὑπέστης, Λόγε, καὶ δυσμενεῖ με χάρμα μὴ καταλίπῃς, ῥάβδῳ δὲ σῇ παίδευε, πλὴν φιλαγάθως. Πρέσβιν δέδεξο μητέρα σήν, ὦ Λόγε, σφᾶς δ' οἷς δέδωκας δεσμολύτιν σου χάριν. Πότνια, πότνα, παμμάκαιρα Παρθένε, σὺ μὲν μακάρων δάπεδον ναίεις πόλον, ἅπαν πάχος βρότειον ἀλλαξαμένη ἀφθαρσίας τ' ἄμφιον ἐστολισμένη ἀεί τ' ἀγήρως ὡς Θεὸς δ' ἐγνωσμένη· λόγοις δ' ἐμοῖς ἄνωθεν εὐμενὴς ἔσο. Ναὶ ναί, Κόρη πάγκλυτε, τοὺς λόγους δέχου· μόνον γάρ ἐστι τοῦτό σοι βροτῶν γέρας, ὡς τοῦ Λόγου σοι μητρί, κἂν ὑπὲρ λόγον. Ὅθεν πεποιθώς σ' ἐν λόγοις ἀμείβομαι καί σοι στέφανον πλεκτὸν ἐξ ἀκηράτου λειμῶνος, ὦ δέσποινα, κοσμήσας