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we have supposed, by the prophetess Miriam leading the chorus of virgins, although many of the commentators have clearly declared her unmarried from the fact that nowhere in the history is her marriage and childbearing mentioned. For she would not have been named and known from her brother Aaron, but from her husband, if she had one, since not the brother, but the husband is called the head of the woman. And yet among those for whom childbearing was earnestly sought and was customary as part of a blessing, if the gift of virginity should appear honorable, we, with much greater reason, shall embrace this earnestness, we who do not hear the divine oracles according to the flesh, but spiritually. For it was revealed through the divine oracles what good it is to conceive and to bear, and what kind of fruitfulness was sought after by the saints of God. For both the prophet Isaiah and the divine apostle have pointed these things out clearly and distinctly, the one saying, “From fear of you, Lord, we have conceived,” the other boasting in being the most fruitful of all, so as to conceive whole cities and nations, not only bringing Corinthians and Galatians to light through his own birth-pangs and forming them in the Lord, but also “from Jerusalem and all the way around to Illyricum filling” the world with his own children, whom he “begot in Christ through the gospel.” Thus also in the gospel is blessed the womb of the holy virgin which ministered to the undefiled birth, since neither did the birth destroy her virginity nor did her virginity stand in the way of such a conception; for where a spirit of salvation is born, as Isaiah says, the desires of the flesh are altogether useless.

20.t Chapter 20. That it is impossible to minister to bodily pleasures and at the same time to reap joy according to God

20.1 And there is also a certain saying of this sort from the apostle, that

each one of us is a twofold person, the one seen from without, which by nature is to be corrupted, the other perceived in the hidden part of the heart, which is able to be renewed. If, therefore, the saying is true—and it is certainly true because of the Truth speaking in it—it is not at all unlikely to conceive of a twofold marriage, suitable and fitting for each of the persons in us; and perhaps he who would dare to say that bodily virginity becomes a co-worker and agent of the inner and spiritual marriage would not be venturing far from what is probable.

20.2 For just as it is not possible at the same time to serve two crafts through the work of one's hands, for example, farming and sailing, or being a smith and a carpenter, but if one is to take up one of them properly, he must refrain from the other; so also for us, with two marriages set before us, the one accomplished through the flesh, the other through the spirit, earnestness for the one makes separation from the other necessary. For neither is the eye able to see two things at the same time, unless it should rest upon each of the visible things in turn and separately, nor will the tongue serve different sounds, speaking both Hebrew and Greek words at the same time, nor will the ear listen to a narrative of events and instructive discourses at the same time; for the difference of the sound, if it is heard in turn, will signify its meaning to the listener, but if, mixed together at the same time, it should ring round the hearing, an indistinct confusion will seize the mind, as the things signified are confused with each other.

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ὑπενοήσαμεν, τῷ τὴν προφῆτιν Μαριὰμ τοῦ χοροῦ τῶν παρθένων ἡγήσασθαι, εἰ καὶ πολλοὶ τῶν ἐπεσκεμμένων ἄγαμον αὐτὴν σαφῶς ἀπεφήναντο ἐκ τοῦ μηδαμοῦ τῆς ἱστορίας γάμον καὶ παιδοποιίαν αὐτῆς μνη μονεύεσθαι. Ἦ γὰρ ἂν οὐκ ἐκ τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ αὐτῆς Ἀαρών, ἀλλ' ἐκ τοῦ ἀνδρός, εἴπερ ἦν, ὠνομάζετο καὶ ἐγνωρίζετο, ἐπειδὴ κεφαλὴ γυναικὸς οὐχ ὁ ἀδελφός, ἀλλ' ὁ ἀνὴρ προση γόρευται. Καίτοι παρ' οἷς εὐλογίας μέρει τὸ παιδοποιεῖν ἐσπουδάζετο καὶ νόμιμον ἦν, εἰ φανείη τίμιον τὸ τῆς παρ θενίας χάρισμα, ἐκ πολλοῦ τοῦ περιόντος ἡμεῖς ταύτην τὴν σπουδὴν ἀσπασώμεθα οἱ οὐ κατὰ σάρκα τῶν θείων λογίων, ἀλλὰ πνευματικῶς ἐξακούοντες. Ἀπεκαλύφθη γὰρ διὰ τῶν θείων λογίων τί ποτε τὸ κυοφορεῖν τε καὶ τίκτειν ἀγαθόν ἐστι, καὶ ποῖον εἶδος τῆς πολυτεκνίας παρὰ τοῖς ἁγίοις τοῦ θεοῦ ἐσπουδάζετο. Ὅ τε γὰρ προφήτης Ἡσαΐας καὶ ὁ θεῖος ἀπόστολος ἐναργῶς ταῦτα καὶ σαφῶς διεσήμαναν, ὁ μὲν λέγων· «Ἀπὸ τοῦ φόβου σου, κύριε, ἐν γαστρὶ ἐλά βομεν», ὁ δὲ καυχώμενος ἐπὶ τῷ πάντων γενέσθαι πολυγονώτατος ὡς καὶ πόλεις ὅλας καὶ ἔθνη κυοφορῆσαι, οὐ μόνον Κορινθίους καὶ Γαλάτας διὰ τῶν οἰκείων ὠδίνων εἰς φῶς ἀγαγὼν καὶ ἐν κυρίῳ μορφώσας, ἀλλὰ καὶ «ἀπὸ Ἱερουσαλὴμ ἐν κύκλῳ μέχρι τοῦ Ἰλλυρικοῦ καταπληρώ-σας» τῶν ἰδίων τέκνων τὴν οἰκουμένην, ἅπερ «ἐν Χριστῷ διὰ τοῦ εὐαγγελίου ἐγέννησεν». Οὕτω μακαρίζεται καὶ ἐν τῷ εὐαγγελίῳ ἡ τῆς ἁγίας παρθένου κοιλία ἡ τῷ ἀχράντῳ τόκῳ ὑπηρετήσασα, ὡς οὔτε τοῦ τόκου τὴν παρθενίαν λύσαντος οὔτε τῆς παρθενίας τῇ τοιαύτῃ κυοφορίᾳ ἐμποδὼν γενομένης· ὅπου γὰρ πνεῦμα σωτηρίας γεννᾶται, καθὼς Ἡσαΐας φησίν, ἄχρηστα πάντως τῆς σαρκὸς τὰ θελήματα.

20.t Κεφάλαιον κʹ Ὅτι ἀδύνατον ὁμοῦ ταῖς σωματικαῖς ὑπηρετεῖν ἡδοναῖς καὶ τὴν κατὰ θεὸν εὐφροσύνην καρποῦσθαι

20.1 Ἔστι δέ τις καὶ παρὰ τῷ ἀποστόλῳ τοιοῦτος λόγος, ὡς ἄρα

διπλοῦς ἡμῶν ἐστιν ὁ καθ' ἕκαστον ἄνθρωπος, ὁ μὲν ὁρώμενος ἔξωθεν, ᾧ τὸ διαφθείρεσθαι κατὰ φύσιν ἐστίν, ὁ δὲ κατὰ τὸ κρυπτόμενον τῆς καρδίας νοούμενος, ὃς ἐπιδέχεται τὸ ἀνακαινοῦσθαι. Εἰ οὖν ἀληθὴς ὁ λόγος-πάν τως δέ ἐστιν ἀληθὴς διὰ τὴν ἐν αὐτῷ λαλοῦσαν ἀλήθειαν-, οὐδὲν ἀπεικὸς καὶ γάμον διπλοῦν ἐννοεῖν ἑκατέρῳ τῶν ἐν ἡμῖν ἀνθρώπων πρόσφορόν τε καὶ κατάλληλον· καὶ τάχα ὁ τολμήσας εἰπεῖν τὴν σωματικὴν παρθενίαν τοῦ ἔνδοθεν καὶ πνευματικοῦ γάμου συνεργὸν καὶ πρόξενον γίνεσθαι οὐ πόρρω τοῦ εἰκότος ἀποτολμήσει.

20.2 Ὡς γὰρ οὐκ ἔστι κατὰ ταὐτὸν δύο τισὶ τέχναις ὑπηρε τεῖν διὰ τῆς τῶν χειρῶν ἐνεργείας, οἷον γεωργοῦντα καὶ ναυτιλλόμενον, ἢ χαλκεύοντά τε καὶ τεκτονεύοντα, ἀλλ' εἰ μέλλοι τις τῆς μιᾶς ὑγιῶς ἀντιλήψεσθαι, τῆς ἑτέρας ἀφεκτέον αὐτῷ· οὕτως ἡμῖν καὶ δύο προκειμένων γάμων, τοῦ μὲν διὰ σαρκὸς ἐπιτελουμένου, τοῦ δὲ διὰ πνεύματος, ἡ περὶ τὸν ἕνα σπουδὴ τὸν τοῦ ἑτέρου χωρισμὸν ἀναγκαῖον ποιεῖ. Οὔτε γὰρ δύο κατὰ ταὐτὸν ὁ ὀφθαλμὸς ἰδεῖν ἱκανός ἐστιν, εἰ μὴ ἀνὰ μέρος καὶ ἰδίᾳ ἑκατέρῳ τῶν ὁρατῶν ἐπερείσειεν, οὔτε ἡ γλῶσσα διαφόροις ὑπηρετήσει φωναῖς, Ἑβραίων τε ῥήματα καὶ Ἑλλήνων ἐν τῷ αὐτῷ φθεγγομένη, οὔτε ἡ ἀκοὴ διηγήσεώς τε πραγμάτων καὶ διδακτικῶν λόγων κατὰ ταὐτὸν ἀκροάσεται· ἡ γὰρ διαφορὰ τῆς φωνῆς, εἰ μὲν ἀνὰ μέρος ἀκούοιτο, ἐνσημανεῖται τῷ ἀκροωμένῳ τὴν ἔννοιαν, εἰ δὲ κατὰ ταὐτὸν μιχθεῖσα περιηχοίη τὴν ἀκοήν, συγχυσίς τις ἀδιάκριτος τὴν διάνοιαν λήψεται τῶν σημαινομένων ἐν ἀλλήλοις συγχεομένων.