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of some living teacher of the habit, the hand is automatically drawn to make the sign. Some have established themselves in a habit, so as not to swear, and neither willingly nor unwillingly will they do this. Let us also establish ourselves in this habit of 62.636 almsgiving. How many labors would we have needed, for this remedy to be found? For tell me, if there were not the consolation of almsgiving, then having sinned myriad times we were making ourselves liable to punishment, would we not have lamented greatly? would we not have said, "If only it were possible to wash away sins through money, and we would have emptied out everything; if only it were possible to cast out the wrath of God through money, and we would not have spared our possessions?" For if we do this in sickness, and in death we say, that "If it were possible to buy off death, so-and-so would have given all his possessions," how much more so here. And yet see the love for mankind of God, how great it is; He did not give you to buy off the temporary death, but the eternal death. "Do not buy," He says, "this short life, but that eternal life; that one I sell to you, not this one; I am not mocking you." Even if you take this one, you have taken nothing; I know that that one is great. But not so do the shopkeepers, and those who trade in worldly things; it would be possible for them to mock whom they wish, and they give the small thing in exchange for the great. But He does not so, but in exchange for the small things He gives the much greater ones. Tell me, if having gone to some merchant, with two stones lying there, one cheap, the other very valuable and producing sufficient wealth, having put down the price of that small one, you took the great one, would you have brought a charge against him? By no means, but rather you would have marveled. So also now lie two lives, the temporary and the eternal; and God is the seller of this life; but He sells this one to us, not that one; why are we vexed like foolish children, that we receive the precious one? Is it possible then to buy life with money, he says? Yes, when we pay down our own things, and not those of others, when we do not commit extortion. "But it is mine then," he says. It is not yours after the robbery, but it is his; it belongs to another, even if you are lord of them ten thousand times. For not even if you should receive a deposit for the time during which the depositor is away, are these things yours, although they lie with you. If therefore, the things which we received from willing and grateful depositors are not ours, not even for that time during which we have them, how much more so these things, which we seize from unwilling people who do not consent. He is their lord, even if you possess them ten thousand times. Virtue is truly ours; but money, not even that which is our own, let alone that of others, but now it is ours, and tomorrow not ours. But the things of virtue are ours; for it is not diminished, like those things, but is present to all whole and entire. Let us therefore acquire this, and despise money, so that we may be able to obtain the truly good things; of which may it be granted that we all be deemed worthy.

HOMILY 7. But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come. For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without truce, without natural affection, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, reckless,

conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness, but denying its power. And from such people turn 62.636 away. For of this sort are those who creep into households, and make captives

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τινος ἐμψύχου διδασκάλου τῆς συνηθείας, ἡ χεὶρ αὐτόματος ἕλκεται πρὸς τὸ σημεῖον ἐργάσασθαι. Ἐν συνηθείᾳ κατέστησαν ἑαυτούς τινες, ὥστε μὴ ὀμνύειν, καὶ οὔτε ἑκόντες οὔτε ἄκοντες τοῦτο πείσονται. Καταστήσωμεν καὶ ἡμεῖς ἑαυτοὺς ἐν ταύτῃ τῇ συνηθείᾳ τῇ τῆς 62.636 ἐλεημοσύνης. Πόσων ἡμῖν ἔδει καμάτων, ὥστε εὑρεθῆναι τὸ φάρμακον τοῦτο; Εἰπὲ γάρ μοι, εἰ μὴ ἦν ἡ τῆς ἐλεημοσύνης παραμυθία, εἶτα μυρία ἡμαρτηκότες ὑπευθύνους ἑαυτοὺς κατεσκευάζομεν τῇ τιμωρίᾳ, ἆρα οὐκ ἂν ἀπωδυρόμεθα πολλά; ἆρα οὐκ ἂν εἴπαμεν, Εἴθε ἦν διὰ χρημάτων ἀπολούσασθαι τὰ ἁμαρτήματα, καὶ πάντα ἂν ἐκενώσαμεν· εἴθε ἦν διὰ χρημάτων ἐκβαλεῖν τὴν ὀργὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ, καὶ οὐκ ἂν ἐφεισάμεθα τῶν ὄντων; Εἰ γὰρ ἐν νόσῳ τοῦτο ποιοῦμεν, καὶ ἐν θανάτῳ λέγομεν, ὅτι Εἰ ἦν θάνατον πρίασθαι, πάντα ἂν ἔδωκεν ὁ δεῖνα τὰ ὑπάρχοντα, πολλῷ μᾶλλον ἐνταῦθα. Καίτοι ὅρα τὴν φιλανθρωπίαν τοῦ Θεοῦ, ὅση τίς ἐστιν· οὐκ ἔδωκέ σοι θάνατον ἀγοράζειν τὸν πρόσκαιρον, ἀλλὰ θάνατον τὸν αἰώνιον. Μὴ τὴν μικρὰν ἀγοράσῃς, φησὶ, ζωὴν ταύτην, ἀλλὰ ζωὴν ἐκείνην τὴν αἰώνιον· ἐκείνην σοι πωλῶ, οὐ ταύτην· οὐκ ἐμπαίζω σοι. Κἂν λάβῃς ταύτην, οὐδὲν ἔλαβες· ἐγὼ οἶδα ὅτι ἐκείνη μεγάλη ἐστίν. Ἀλλ' οὐχ οὕτως οἱ κάπηλοι, καὶ οἱ τὰ βιωτικὰ ἐμπορευόμενοι ποιοῦσιν· ἐκείνοις ἂν ἐξῆν ἐμπαῖξαι οἷς βούλονται, καὶ τὸ μικρὸν διδόασιν ἀντὶ τοῦ μεγάλου. Αὐτὸς δὲ οὐχ οὕτως, ἀλλ' ἀντὶ τῶν μικρῶν τὰ πολλῷ μείζονα δίδωσιν. Εἰπέ μοι, εἰ πρὸς ἔμπορόν τινα ἀπελθὼν, δύο λίθων κειμένων, τοῦ μὲν εὐτελοῦς, τοῦ δὲ βαρυτίμου καὶ ἱκανὸν ἐργαζομένου πλοῦτον, καταθεὶς ἐκείνου τοῦ μικροῦ τὸ τίμημα, τὸν μέγαν ἔλαβες, ἆρα ἂν ἐνεκάλεσας ἐκείνῳ; Οὐδαμῶς, ἀλλὰ μᾶλλον [ἂν] ἐθαύμασας. Οὕτω καὶ νῦν κεῖνται δύο ζωαὶ, ἡ πρόσκαιρος καὶ ἡ αἰωνία· πωλεῖ δὲ ταύτης ὁ Θεός· ἀλλὰ ταύτην ἡμῖν πωλεῖ, οὐκ ἐκείνην· τί ἀσχάλλομεν κατὰ τοὺς ἀνοήτους τῶν παίδων, ὅτι τὸ τίμιον λαμβάνομεν; Ἔστιν οὖν ἀγοράσαι ζωὴν χρημάτων, φησί; Ναὶ, ὅταν τὰ ἑαυτῶν, καὶ μὴ τὰ ἀλλότρια καταβάλλωμεν, ὅταν μὴ ἐπίθεσιν ποιῶμεν. Ἀλλ' ἐμὰ λοιπόν ἐστι, φησίν. Οὐκ ἔστι σὰ μετὰ τὴν ἁρπαγὴν, ἀλλ' ἐκείνου ἐστίν· ἀλλότριά ἐστι, κἂν μυριάκις αὐτῶν κύριος ᾖς. Οὐδὲ γὰρ, εἰ παρακαταθήκην λάβοις τὸν καιρὸν, καθ' ὃν ὁ παρακαταθέμενος ἀποδημεῖ, σὰ ταῦτά ἐστι, καίτοι γε παρὰ σοὶ κεῖται. Εἰ τοίνυν, ἅπερ ἑκόντων καὶ χάριν εἰδότων τῶν παρακαταθεμένων ἐλάβομεν, οὐκ ἔστιν ἡμέτερα, οὐδὲ ἐκεῖνον τὸν καιρὸν καθ' ὃν ἔχομεν, πολλῷ μᾶλλον ταῦτα, ἅπερ ἀκόντων καὶ μὴ βουλομένων ἁρπάζομεν. Ἐκεῖνός ἐστιν αὐτῶν κύριος, κἂν μυριάκις αὐτὰ ἔχῃς. Ἡμετέρα ὄντως ἐστὶν ἡ ἀρετή· τὰ δὲ χρήματα οὐδὲ τὰ ἡμέτερα, μήτι γε τὰ ἀλλότρια, ἀλλὰ νῦν μὲν ἡμῶν, αὔριον δὲ οὐχ ἡμῶν. Τὰ δὲ τῆς ἀρετῆς ἡμέτερα· οὐ γὰρ ζημιοῦται αὕτη, καθάπερ ἐκεῖνα, ἀλλὰ πᾶσι παροῦσά ἐστιν ὁλόκληρος. Ταύτην οὖν κτησώμεθα, καὶ χρημάτων καταφρονῶμεν, ἵνα δυνηθῶμεν τῶν ὄντως ἐπιτυχεῖν ἀγαθῶν· ὧν γένοιτο πάντας ἡμᾶς ἀξιωθῆναι.

ΟΜΙΛΙΑ Ζʹ. Τοῦτο δὲ γίνωσκε, ὅτι ἐν ἐσχάταις ἡμέραις ἐν στήσονται καιροὶ χαλεποί· ἔσονται γὰρ οἱ ἄν θρωποι φίλαυτοι, φιλάργυροι, ἀλαζόνες, ὑπερ ήφανοι, βλάσφημοι, γονεῦσιν ἀπειθεῖς, ἀχά ριστοι, ἀνόσιοι, ἄσπονδοι, ἄστοργοι, διάβολοι, ἀκρατεῖς, ἀνήμεροι, ἀφιλάγαθοι, προδόται, προπετεῖς,

τετυφωμένοι, φιλήδονοι μᾶλλον ἢ φιλόθεοι, ἔχοντες μόρφωσιν εὐσεβείας, τὴν δὲ δύναμιν αὐτῆς ἠρνημένοι. Καὶ τούτους ἀπο 62.636 τρέπου. Ἐκ τούτων γάρ εἰσιν οἱ ἐνδύνοντες εἰς τὰς οἰκίας, καὶ αἰχμαλωτίζοντες