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and to offer their doxology more earnestly to the Master, and to be grateful to the one who bestowed so many benefits upon them. But they did the opposite, and from much ease they became insolent. For this very reason, the divine scripture, accusing them, says: "Jacob ate and was filled, and grew fat and thick, and the beloved one kicked." 5.17 For after those many wonders and strange signs, and the crossing of the sea and the destruction of the Egyptians, and the strange and new food of manna, while still having a vivid memory of the benefactions, since they were in much ease, having forgotten all those things, they fashioned a calf and worshipped it, saying: "These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you out of the land of Egypt." O the ingratitude, O the great insensibility! For such is always their custom; and when they receive ease, they are carried down cliffs and they forget their benefactor; but when they are a little distressed, then they are restrained and humbled. Therefore, the blessed David, declaring this, said: "When he slew them, then they sought him." 5.18 But such is the custom of ungrateful servants and of the insensible Jews. But let us, I entreat, continually turning over the gifts of God in our mind and remembering the magnitude and multitude of His benefits, become grateful, and always acknowledge the author of our good things, and let us show forth a manner of life worthy of the benefactions, and on each day let us work out the health of our own soul. And especially you who were recently deemed worthy of the divine initiation and have put off the burdens of your sins and have put on a bright robe; and why do I say a bright robe, you who have put on Christ himself and have received the Master of all as an inhabitant, show forth a manner of life worthy of the one who dwells within, so that you may also draw down more grace from above and strive to become imitators of him who was formerly a persecutor but afterwards became an apostle. 5.19 When he was baptized and was illuminated by the light of truth, he immediately became great even so, but he became much greater as time went on. For since he contributed the things from himself—zeal, readiness, a noble mind, fervent desire, contempt for present things—then the things from the grace of God also flowed to him with great abundance. And he who before this displayed an unrestrainable madness, and running about everywhere and in all ways warring against the word of piety, when he recognized the way of truth, immediately also confounded the ungrateful Jews and was let down "through a window in a basket" so that he could escape the cruelty of the raging Jews. Have you seen the sudden change? Have you seen how the grace of the Spirit reshaped his soul, how it changed his mind, how, just as fire falling on thorns, so the grace of the Spirit, entering in, both made the thorns of sin disappear and made him stronger than adamant? 5.20 Imitate him, you also, I beseech you, and you will be able to be called newly-enlightened not only for two and three and ten and twenty days, but even after ten and twenty and thirty years have passed, and to be deemed worthy of this address, so to speak, through this whole life. For if we are zealous for the light in us, I mean the grace of the Spirit, to make it brighter through the practice of good works so that it is never extinguished, we will enjoy this address for all time. For just as it is possible for the one who is sober and watchful and who displays a worthy manner of life to be continually newly-enlightened, so again it is possible even after one day, by being slothful, to become unworthy of this address. 5.21 Since the blessed Paul also, through his subsequent virtue, having drawn down more influence from above, remained continually in this brightness, making the light of virtue brighter in himself. The

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ποιεῖν καὶ τὴν δοξολογίαν σπουδαιότερον ἀναφέρειν τῷ δεσπότῃ καὶ εὐγνώμονας γίνεσθαι περὶ τὸν τοσαύτας εὐεργεσίας εἰς αὐτοὺς καταθέμενον. Οἱ δὲ τὸ ἐναντίον ἐποίησαν καὶ ὑπὸ πολλῆς ἀνέσεως ἐξετραχηλίσθησαν. ∆ιά τοι τοῦτο κατηγοροῦσα αὐτῶν ἡ θεία γραφή φησιν· «Ἔφαγεν Ἰακὼβ καὶ ἐνεπλήσθη, ἐλιπάνθη καὶ ἐπαχύνθη καὶ ἀπελάκτισεν ὁ ἠγαπημένος.» 5.17 Μετὰ γὰρ τὰ πολλὰ θαύματα ἐκεῖνα καὶ τὰ σημεῖα τὰ παράδοξα καὶ τῆς θαλάττης τὴν διάβασιν καὶ τὸν τῶν Αἰγυπτίων ὄλεθρον καὶ τὴν ξένην καὶ καινὴν τοῦ μάννα τροφήν, ἔτι ἔναυλον ἔχοντες τῶν εὐεργεσιῶν τὴν μνήμην, ἐπειδὴ ἐν πολλῇ ἀνέσει γεγόνασι, λήθην ἁπάντων ἐκείνων ποιησάμενοι μόσχον κατασκευάσαντες προσεκύνουν λέγοντες· «Οὗτοι οἱ θεοί σου, Ἰσραήλ, οἱ ἐξαγαγόντες σε ἐκ γῆς Αἰγύπτου.» Ὢ τῆς ἀγνωμοσύνης, ὢ τῆς πολλῆς ἀναισθησίας. Τοιοῦτον γὰρ αὐτῶν ἀεὶ τὸ ἔθος καὶ ὅταν μὲν ἀνέσεως λάβωνται κατὰ κρημνῶν φέρονται καὶ ἐπιλανθάνονται τοῦ εὐεργέτου· ὅταν δὲ μικρὸν στενοχωρηθῶσι, τότε συστέλλονται καὶ ταπεινοῦνται. ∆ιὸ καὶ ὁ μακάριος ∆αβὶδ τοῦτο δηλῶν ἔλεγεν· «Ὅταν ἀπέκτεννεν αὐτούς, τότε ἐξεζήτουν αὐτόν.» 5.18 Ἀλλὰ τοιοῦτο τῶν ἀγνωμόνων οἰκετῶν καὶ τῶν ἀναισθήτων Ἰουδαίων τὸ ἔθος. Ἡμεῖς δέ, παρακαλῶ, διηνεκῶς τὰς τοῦ Θεοῦ δωρεὰς ἐπὶ τῆς διανοίας στρέφοντες καὶ ἀναμιμνῃσκόμενοι τῶν εὐεργεσιῶν αὐτοῦ τὸ μέγεθος καὶ τὸ πλῆθος εὐγνώμονες γινώμεθα καὶ διὰ παντὸς τὸν τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἡμῖν αἴτιον ἐπιγινώσκωμεν καὶ ἀξίαν τῶν εὐεργεσιῶν τὴν πολιτείαν ἐπιδειξώμεθα καὶ καθ' ἑκάστην ἡμέραν τῆς ἑαυτῶν ψυχῆς τὴν ὑγίειαν πραγματευώμεθα. Καὶ μάλιστα ὑμεῖς οἱ πρόσφατον τῆς θείας καταξιωθέντες μυσταγωγίας καὶ τὰ τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων ἀποθέμενοι φορτία καὶ λαμπρὰν τὴν στολὴν περιβαλόμενοι· καὶ τί λέγω λαμπρὰν στολήν, οἱ τὸν Χριστὸν αὐτὸν ἐνδεδυμένοι καὶ τὸν τῶν ὅλων δεσπότην ἔνοικον δεξάμενοι, ἀξίαν τοῦ ἐνοικοῦντος τὴν πολιτείαν ἐπιδείξασθε ἵνα καὶ πλείονα τὴν ἄνωθεν χάριν ἐπισπάσησθε καὶ μιμηταὶ γενέσθαι σπουδάσητε τοῦ προτέρου μὲν διώκτου μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα ἀποστόλου γενομένου. 5.19 Ὃς ἡνίκα μὲν ἐβαπτίσθη καὶ τῷ φωτὶ τῆς ἀληθείας κατηυγάσθη, εὐθέως μὲν καὶ οὕτω μέγας γέγονε, πολλῷ δὲ μείζων ἐγένετο τοῦ χρόνου προϊόντος. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ τὰ παρ' ἑαυτοῦ εἰσήνεγκε, τὸν ζῆλον, τὴν προθυμίαν, τὸ φρόνημα τὸ γενναῖον, τὸν πόθον τὸν ζέοντα, τὴν ὑπεροψίαν τῶν παρόντων, ἐπέρρει αὐτῷ λοιπὸν καὶ τὰ παρὰ τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ χάριτος μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς δαψιλείας. Καὶ ὁ πρὸ τούτου ἀκάθεκτον τὴν μανίαν ἐπιδεικνύμενος καὶ πανταχοῦ διατρέχων καὶ διὰ πάντων πολεμῶν τῷ τῆς εὐσεβείας λόγῳ, ἐπειδὴ ἐπέγνω τὴν τῆς ἀληθείας ὁδόν, εὐθέως καὶ συνέχυνε τοὺς ἀγνώμονας Ἰουδαίους καὶ «διὰ θυρίδος ἐν σαργάνῃ» ἐχαλᾶτο ἵνα δυνηθῇ διαφυγεῖν τῶν μαινομένων Ἰουδαίων τὴν ὠμότητα. Εἴδετε ἀθρόαν μεταβολήν; Εἴδετε τοῦ Πνεύματος τὴν χάριν πῶς αὐτοῦ τὴν ψυχὴν μετερρύθμισε, πῶς αὐτοῦ τὴν γνώμην μετέβαλε, πῶς καθάπερ πῦρ εἰς ἀκάνθας ἐμπεσόν, οὕτως ἡ τοῦ Πνεύματος χάρις ἐπεισελθοῦσα καὶ τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων τὰς ἀκάνθας ἠφάνισε καὶ ἀδάμαντος αὐτὸν στερρότερον εἰργάσατο; 5.20 Τοῦτον καὶ ὑμεῖς μιμήσασθε, παρακαλῶ, καὶ δυνήσεσθε οὐ πρὸς δύο καὶ τρεῖς καὶ δέκα ἡμέρας καὶ εἴκοσι μόνον καλεῖσθαι νεοφώτιστοι, ἀλλὰ καὶ δέκα καὶ εἴκοσι καὶ τριάκοντα παρελθόντων ἐτῶν καὶ διὰ πάσης ὡς εἰπεῖν τῆς ζωῆς ταύτης ἀξιοῦσθαι τῆς προσηγορίας. Ἐὰν γὰρ τὸ ἐν ἡμῖν φῶς, τοῦ Πνεύματος λέγω τὴν χάριν, σπουδάζωμεν διὰ τῆς τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἔργων πράξεως φαιδρότερον ἀπεργάζεσθαι ὥστε μηδέποτε κατασβεσθῆναι, διὰ παντὸς τοῦ χρόνου ταύτης ἀπολαύσομεν τῆς προσηγορίας. Ὥσπερ γὰρ ἔστι τὸν νήφοντα καὶ ἐγρηγορότα καὶ ἀξίαν πολιτείαν ἐπιδεικνύμενον διηνεκῶς εἶναι νεοφώτιστον, οὕτω πάλιν ἔστι καὶ μετὰ μίαν ἡμέραν ῥᾳθυμήσαντα ἀνάξιον γενέσθαι ταύτης τῆς προσηγορίας. 5.21 Ἐπεὶ καὶ ὁ μακάριος Παῦλος διὰ τῆς μετὰ ταῦτα ἀρετῆς πλείονα τὴν ἄνωθεν ἐπισπασάμενος ῥοπήν, διηνεκῶς ἐν τῇ φαιδρότητι ταύτῃ διέμεινε, λαμπρότερον ἐν αὐτῷ τῆς ἀρετῆς τὸ φῶς ἐργαζόμενος. Ὁ