27

for them mortality by life,” and the life in virginity seems to be a certain image of the blessedness “in the age to come,” bearing in itself many marks of the good things laid up through hope. And it is possible to recognize the truth of what has been said by examining the argument. For first, “having died once to sin, he lives henceforth to God,” no longer “bearing fruit for death,” and as much as is in his power, having brought about in himself the end of the life according to the flesh, he awaits henceforth “the blessed hope and appearing of the great God,” creating no interval between himself and the presence of God through intervening generations. Then he also reaps in the present life the choicest of the good things of the resurrection. For if the life which has been promised by the Lord to the righteous after the resurrection is equal to the angels, and it is a characteristic of the angelic nature to be free from marriage, he has already received the good things of the promise, being mingled “in the splendors of the saints” and imitating by the undefilement of his life the purity of the incorporeal beings. If, therefore, virginity is the cause of these and such things, what discourse will worthily admire this grace? What other of the soul’s goods will appear so great and precious as to be made equal by comparison to the greatness of this gift?

15.t Chapter 15. That true virginity in every practice

is seen. 15.1 But if the excellence of this gift has been comprehended by us, to understand also

it is fitting also what follows, that this achievement is not simple, as one might suppose, nor confined to bodies, but extending and passing in thought to all things, as many as are and are considered achievements of the soul. For the soul joined to the true bridegroom through virginity will not only keep itself from bodily defilements, but will begin its purity from there, and will proceed to all things similarly and with equal security, lest the heart, being inclined beyond what is right to the fellowship of something evil, should receive some adulterous passion in that part. What I mean is this—for I will repeat the argument again—: the soul joined to the Lord so as to become one spirit with him, and having, as it were, made a certain covenant of life together to "love him alone with all its heart and strength," will neither be joined to fornication, that it might not become one body with it, nor will it accept anything else of the things opposed to salvation, since the fellowship of defilements is one in all things, and if it were defiled by any one thing, it would no longer be able to have what is spotless in itself. 15.2 It is also possible to establish the argument by an example. Just as the water in a lake is for a time smooth and still, if no external disturbance falling upon it moves the stability of the place, but when a stone from somewhere falls into the lake, the whole is shaken in a circle, rippling along with the partial surge—for it sinks to the bottom by its weight, but as the waves around it are raised circularly one after another and are pushed to the edges of the water by the motion in the middle, the entire surface of the lake is roughened in a circle, being affected together with the depth—; so too the calm and quiet state of the soul, when some one passion has intruded into it, is wholly shaken and has felt the harm of the part. And those who have investigated such things say that the virtues are not separated from one another, nor is it possible for one

27

ἐκείνοις τὸ θνητὸν ὑπὸ τῆς ζωῆς», καὶ ἔοικεν εἰκών τις εἶναι τῆς «ἐν τῷ μέλλοντι αἰῶνι» μακαριότητος ὁ ἐν παρθενίᾳ βίος, πολλὰ φέρων ἐν ἑαυτῷ τῶν δι' ἐλπίδος ἀποκειμένων ἀγαθῶν τὰ γνωρίσμα τα. Ἔξεστι δὲ ἐπιγνῶναι τὴν τῶν εἰρημένων ἀλήθειαν τὸν λόγον κατεξετάζοντας· πρῶτον μὲν γὰρ «τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ καθά παξ ἀποθανὼν ζῇ τὸ λοιπὸν τῷ θεῷ», οὐκέτι «καρποφορῶν τῷ θανάτῳ», καὶ ὅσον τὸ ἐφ' ἑαυτῷ συντέλειαν τῆς κατὰ σάρκα ζωῆς ἐν ἑαυτῷ ποιήσας ἀναμένει λοιπὸν «τὴν μακα ρίαν ἐλπίδα καὶ ἐπιφάνειαν τοῦ μεγάλου θεοῦ», οὐδὲν διά στημα μεταξὺ ἑαυτοῦ καὶ τῆς παρουσίας τοῦ θεοῦ διὰ τῶν διὰ μέσου γενεῶν ἐργαζόμενος. Εἶτα τὸ ἐξαίρετον τῶν ἐν τῇ ἀναστάσει καλῶν καὶ ἐν τῷ παρόντι καρποῦται βίῳ· εἰ γὰρ ἰσάγγελος ἡ ζωή, ἣ μετὰ τὴν ἀνάστασιν παρὰ τοῦ κυρίου τοῖς δικαίοις ἐπήγγελται, τῆς δὲ ἀγγελικῆς φύσεως ἴδιον τὸ ἀπηλλάχθαι τοῦ γάμου ἐστίν, ἤδη δέδεκται τὰ τῆς ἐπαγγελίας καλὰ «ταῖς λαμπρότησι τῶν ἁγίων» ἀναμι γνύμενος καὶ τῷ ἀμολύντῳ τῆς ζωῆς τὴν καθαρότητα τῶν ἀσωμάτων μιμούμενος. Εἰ οὖν τούτων καὶ τῶν τοιούτων ἡ παρθενία γίνεται πρόξενος, τίς μὲν λόγος ἐπαξίως τὴν χάριν ταύτην θαυμάσεται; Τί δὲ ἄλλο τῶν τῆς ψυχῆς ἀγαθῶν οὕτω φανήσεται μέγα καὶ τίμιον, ὡς τῷ μεγαλείῳ τοῦ χαρίσματος τούτου παρισωθῆναι διὰ συγκρίσεως;

15.t Κεφάλαιον ιεʹ Ὅτι ἡ ἀληθὴς παρθενία ἐν παντὶ ἐπιτηδεύματι

θεωρεῖται. 15.1 Ἀλλ' εἰ κατείληπται ἡμῖν ἡ ὑπερβολὴ τοῦ χαρί σματος, συνιδεῖν

προσήκει καὶ τὸ ἀκόλουθον, ὅτι οὐχ ἁπλοῦν, ὡς ἄν τις οἰηθείη, τὸ κατόρθωμα τοῦτό ἐστιν, οὐδὲ μέχρι τῶν σωμάτων ἱστάμενον, ἀλλ' ἐπὶ πάντα διῆκον καὶ διαβαῖνον τῇ ἐπινοίᾳ, ὅσα κατορθώματα ψυχῆς ἐστι καὶ νομίζεται. Ἡ γὰρ τῷ ἀληθινῷ νυμφίῳ προσκολληθεῖσα διὰ παρθενίας ψυχή, οὐ μόνον τῶν σωματικῶν μολυσμάτων ἑαυτὴν ἀποστήσει, ἀλλ' ἐντεῦθεν μὲν ἄρξεται τῆς καθα ρότητος, ἐπὶ πάντα δὲ ὁμοίως καὶ μετὰ τῆς ἴσης ἀσφα λείας πορεύσεται, μήπου τῆς καρδίας παρὰ τὸ δέον ἐπικλιθείσης εἰς πονηροῦ τινος κοινωνίαν μοιχικόν τι πάθος κατὰ τὸ μέρος ἐκεῖνο προσδέξηται. Οἷόν τι λέγω -πάλιν γὰρ τὸν λόγον ἐπαναλήψομαι-· ἡ τῷ κυρίῳ προσκολληθεῖσα ψυχὴ εἰς τὸ γενέσθαι πρὸς αὐτὸν ἓν πνεῦμα, καὶ καθάπερ ὁμολογίαν τινὰ συμβιωτικὴν καταθεμένη τὸ μόνον ἐκεῖνον «ἀγαπᾶν ἐξ ὅλης καρδίας τε καὶ δυνάμεως», οὔτε τῇ πορνείᾳ προσκολληθήσεται, ἵνα μὴ γένηται σῶμα ἓν πρὸς αὐτήν, οὔτε ἄλλο τι τῶν ἀντικειμένων τῇ σωτηρίᾳ προσδέξεται, ὡς μιᾶς οὔσης ἐν ἅπασι τῆς τῶν μιασμάτων κοινότητος, καί, εἰ δι' ἑνός τινος μολυνθείη, μηκέτι τὸ ἄσπιλον ἔχειν ἐν ἑαυτῇ δυναμένη. 15.2 Ἔστι δὲ καὶ δι' ὑποδείγματος τεκμηριῶσαι τὸν λόγον. Ὥσπερ τὸ ἐν τῇ λίμνῃ ὕδωρ τέως μὲν λεῖόν ἐστι καὶ ἀκίνη τον, εἰ μηδεμία τις τῶν ἔξωθεν ταραχὴ προσπεσοῦσα τὸ σταθερὸν τοῦ τόπου διακινήσειε, λίθου δέ ποθεν ἐμπεσόντος τῇ λίμνῃ ὅλον ἐν κύκλῳ συνεκλονήθη τῷ μερικῷ σάλῳ συγκυματούμενον-ὁ μὲν γὰρ ὑπὸ τοῦ βάρους εἰς τὸν βυθὸν καταδύεται, τῶν δὲ περὶ αὐτὸν κυμάτων κυκλοτερῶς ἐν ἀλλήλοις ἐγειρομένων καὶ ἐπὶ τὰ ἄκρα τοῦ ὕδατος ὑπὸ τῆς ἐν τῷ μέσῳ κινήσεως ἐξωθουμένων, πᾶσα ἐν κύκλῳ περιτραχύνεται τῆς λίμνης ἡ ἐπιφάνεια συνδιατιθεμένη τῷ βάθει-· οὕτω καὶ τὸ τῆς ψυχῆς γαληναῖον καὶ ἡσύχιον δι' ἑνός τινος παρεμπεσόντος εἰς αὐτὴν πάθους ὅλον συν διεσείσθη καὶ τῆς τοῦ μέρους βλάβης ἐπῄσθετο. Φασὶ δὲ καὶ οἱ τὰ τοιαῦτα ἐξητακότες μὴ ἀπεσχίσθαι τὰς ἀρετὰς ἀπ' ἀλλήλων μηδὲ δυνατὸν εἶναι μιᾶς