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QUESTION 83 Concerning the different wills of God. RESPONSE Three wills must be understood concerning God: according to good pleasure, according to economy,

according to concession. And that according to good pleasure declares what concerns Abraham, when it was said to him "go out 14Α_134 from your land"; that according to economy declares what was dispensed concerning Joseph for the outcome of future events; and that according to concession declares what happened concerning Job.

QUESTION 84 What is: "Do not call a man blessed before his death"? RESPONSE And according to the readily available understanding of the many, on account of the uncertainty and the

slipperiness of human choice, one must not call anyone blessed until, having passed through every virtue, he concludes his life with an incontestable end. But according to the higher understanding, one who has begun through repentance and ascetic practice to humble and weaken the living earthly mindset within him is not yet blessed until it is put to death and brought to completion through the intense labor of ascetic practice; for such a one is blessed, as one who has died with Christ through the non-performance of evil deeds and is risen again with him through the height of the virtues. For the psalmist also signifies this, saying "blessed are the blameless in the way," that is, those pure from wickedness, "who walk in the law of the Lord," those who journey by means of good actions.

QUESTION 85 What does the psalmist mean concerning enemies, saying "of those who attack all around"? RESPONSE "All around" is in front, behind, to the right, to the left. 14Α_136

Therefore, the demons attack us in front whenever they entice us through the appearances of matter, and behind whenever they stir up the memory through the preconceptions of wicked thoughts, and to the left whenever they force open the soul through fleshly and intemperate passions, and to the right whenever they attack the soul through vainglory and pride.

QUESTION 86 What is: "Take up a psalm and bring forth a timbrel"? RESPONSE Take up inspired teaching and bring forth virtuous action through the mortification of the

body. QUESTION 87 What is elementary constitution? RESPONSE They say there are three kinds of bodies: first, that of the four elements,

fire, water, earth, air; then from these, second bodies, all growing things, both trees and vegetables; and from these a third body, the human and that of the irrational animals; for by eating these, they become flesh. Therefore, just as the four elements are the beginning and elementary constitution of our bodies, so also of the soul, the elementary constitution and beginning from the four general virtues brings about the right ordering of morals; then from this, as it were a second body, is the state of the virtues; then from this, knowledge or contemplation is embodied; "for practice is the foundation of contemplation."

14Α_138 QUESTION 88

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ΕΡΩΤΗΣΙΣ 83 Περὶ διαφόρων θελημάτων Θεοῦ. ΑΠΟΚΡΙΣΙΣ Τρία θελήματα ἐπὶ Θεοῦ χρὴ ὑπολαμβάνειν, κατ᾽ εὐδοκίαν, κατ᾽ οἰκονομίαν,

κατὰ συγχώρησιν. Καὶ τὸ μὲν κατ᾽ εὐδοκίαν δηλοῖ τὰ κατὰ τὸν Ἀβραάμ, λέγοντα πρὸς αὐτὸν "ἔξελθε 14Α_134 ἐκ τῆς γῆς σου"· τὸ δὲ κατ᾽ οἰκονομίαν δηλοῖ τὰ κατὰ τὸν Ἰωσὴφ οἰκονομηθέντα πρὸς τὴν τῶν μελλόντων ἔκβασιν· τὸ δὲ κατὰ συγχώρησιν δηλοῖ τὰ κατὰ τὸν Ἰὼβ γενόμενα.

ΕΡΩΤΗΣΙΣ 84 Τί ἐστιν· «μὴ μακαρίσῃς ἄνδρα πρὸ τελευτῆς αὐτοῦ»; ΑΠΟΚΡΙΣΙΣ Καὶ κατὰ τὸν πρόχειρον τῶν πολλῶν νοῦν, διὰ τὸ ἄδηλον καὶ τὸ τῆς

ἀνθρωπίνης προαιρέσεως εὐόλισθον, οὐ χρὴ μακαρίζειν τινὰ μέχρις διὰ πάσης ἀρετῆς διελθὼν ἀναντιρρήτῳ τέλει τὴν ζωὴν κατακλείσει. Πρὸς δὲ τὸν ὑψηλότερον νοῦν, ὁ ἀρξάμενος διὰ τῆς μετανοίας καὶ ἀσκήσεως τὸ ζῶν ἐν αὐτῷ γήϊνον φρόνημα ταπεινοῦν καὶ ἀσθενῆ ποιεῖν οὔπω μακαριστὸς μέχρις ἂν διὰ τοῦ συντόνου τῆς ἀσκήσεως πόνου νεκρωθῇ καὶ συντέλειαν λάβῃ· ὁ γὰρ τοιοῦτος μακάριος, ὡς τῷ Χριστῷ συναποθανὼν διὰ τῆς τῶν κακῶν ἀπραξίας καὶ συνανιστάμενος πάλιν διὰ τοῦ ὕψους τῶν ἀρετῶν. Τοῦτο γὰρ καὶ ὁ ψαλμῳδὸς σημαίνει λέγων "μακάριοι οἱ ἄμωμοι ἐν ὁδῷ", οἱ καθαροὶ δηλονότι κακίας, "οἱ πορευόμενοι ἐν νόμῳ Κυρίου", οἱ διὰ τῶν ἀγαθῶν πράξεων ὁδεύοντες.

ΕΡΩΤΗΣΙΣ 85 Τί σημαίνει ὁ ψαλμῳδὸς περὶ ἐχθρῶν λέγων "τῶν κύκλῳ συνεπιτιθεμένων"; ΑΠΟΚΡΙΣΙΣ Τὸ κύκλῳ ἐστὶν τὸ ἐμπρός, τὸ ὀπίσω, τὸ δεξιόν, τὸ ἀριστερόν. 14Α_136

Ἐπιτίθενται οὖν ἡμῖν οἱ δαίμονες ἔμπροσθεν μὲν ὅτ᾽ ἂν διὰ τῶν τῆς ὕλης ἐπιφανειῶν δελεάζουσιν, ὀπίσω δὲ ὅτ᾽ ἂν διὰ τῶν προλήψεων τῶν λογισμῶν τῆς κακίας τὴν μνήμην ἀνακινοῦσιν, ἀριστερὰ δὲ ὅτ᾽ ἂν διὰ τῶν σαρκικῶν καὶ ἀκολάστων παθῶν τὴν ψυχὴν ἐκμοχλεύουσιν, δεξιὰ δὲ ὅτ᾽ ἂν διὰ κενοδοξίας καὶ ὑπερηφανίας τῇ ψυχῇ ἐπιτίθενται.

ΕΡΩΤΗΣΙΣ 86 Τί ἐστιν· «λάβετε ψαλμὸν καὶ δότε τύμπανον»; ΑΠΟΚΡΙΣΙΣ Λάβετε διδασκαλίαν ἔνθεον καὶ δότε πρᾶξιν ἐνάρετον διὰ τῆς νεκρώσεως τοῦ

σώματος. ΕΡΩΤΗΣΙΣ 87 Τί ἐστιν στοιχείωσις; ΑΠΟΚΡΙΣΙΣ Τρία φασὶν λέγεσθαι σώματα· πρῶτον μὲν τὸ τῶν τεσσάρων στοιχείων,

πυρός, ὕδατος, γῆς, ἀέρος· εἶτα ἐκ τούτων δεύτερα σώματα, πάντα τὰ φυόμενα δένδρα τε καὶ λαχανηρά· ἐκ τούτων δὲ τρίτον σῶμα τὸ ἀνθρώπινον καὶ τὸ τῶν ἀλόγων· ταῦτα γὰρ τρώγοντες γίνονται σάρκες. Ὥσπερ οὖν ἀρχὴ καὶ στοιχείωσίς ἐστιν τῶν ἡμετέρων σωμάτων τὰ τέσσαρα στοιχεῖα, οὕτως καὶ τῆς ψυχῆς ἡ ἐκ τῶν τεσσάρων γενικῶν ἀρετῶν στοιχείωσις καὶ ἀρχὴ ποιεῖ τὴν τῶν ἠθῶν κατόρθωσιν· εἶτα ἐξ αὐτοῦ οἱονεὶ δεύτερον σῶμα ἡ ἕξις τῶν ἀρετῶν· εἶτα ἀπὸ ταύτης σωματοποιεῖται ἡ γνῶσις ἤτουν θεωρία· «πρᾶξις γὰρ ἐπίβασις θεωρίας».

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