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having the boast "that in simplicity and sincerity and grace of God, but not in fleshly wisdom they conducted themselves in the world". Therefore they will answer you reverently thus: "divine things are not circumscribed by our knowledge, O man, and many of the things unknown by us have reasons worthy of God; therefore comparing spiritual things with spiritual, according to the same apostle, from the Old Testament we shall confirm the graces of the new". And for this reason the apostle called the proof from the old things a comparison, since with the confirmation from there the gifts of grace are shown to be even greater than the things of the law. And so those who live and see by the spirit will say to those asking how the invisible light is seen: "as that God-seer Elias saw; for that he did not see sensibly the mantle placed on his face showed; but that he saw God, having covered his sensible eyes with the mantle, a worthy witness and herald is the mark of his name among all; for God-seer, or rather even exceedingly most God-seeing, he is called by all".

(σελ. 202) And if again someone should ask such men, "what is this that you say the prayer mystically echoes for us in our inward parts and what is this that moves the heart," they will put forward again that of the same Elias, the earthquake, being a prelude of the manifest noetic epiphany of God, and the resounding belly of Isaiah. But to the one who asks further, "and what is the warmth that arises from prayer," they will point to the fire, which Elias himself again says is a sign of God, who is not yet manifest, but still needing the transformation into a gentle breeze, if it is to, having received the divine ray in itself, show the invisible one to the one beholding, and Elias himself as both being and appearing as fire and ascending in a fiery chariot with his body, but also the other prophet whose inward parts were burned as if by fire, and this because the word of God became as fire in him. And if you should examine anything else of the things mystically worked in them, those men, comparing with like spiritual things, as we said, will show you similar things and in common to all they will say: do you not hear, O man, that "man ate the bread of angels"? Do you not hear the Lord saying that he will give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him day and night? What then is the bread of angels? Is it not the divine and super-celestial light with which the minds are united, either by direct apprehension or by reception beyond the mind, according to the great Dionysius? Of this light, therefore, the illumination unto men God indeed prefigured for a period of forty years by sending down the manna from above, but Christ fulfilled, by sending the illumination of the Spirit to those who firmly believe in him and demonstrate their faith through works and setting forth his illuminating body for food; for this also is a pledge of the ineffable communion of Jesus in the future. And if those things prefigured anything else of the things given to us from Christ, it is not at all wonderful (σελ. 204). But do you see that also from those symbolic illuminations a certain noetic illumination appears and other mysteries beyond knowledge?

But since you said that they say it is a sensible light that appeared on Tabor, those who reject the divine light of grace, first we will ask them if they hold as divine the light that then shone around the chosen of the disciples on Tabor. For if they do not hold it as divine, Peter will indeed refute them, on the one hand on the mountain according to Mark having kept awake and seen the glory of Christ, on the other hand in his second epistle himself writing that he was an eyewitness of his majesty, being with him on the holy mountain; and he will gloriously silence them, the one with the golden tongue who clarifies the evangelical proclamations; for he says, "The Lord appeared more brilliant than himself, For of the body

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ἔχοντες τήν καύχησιν «ὅτι ἐν ἁπλότητι καί εἰλικρινείᾳ καί χάριτι Θεοῦ, ἀλλ᾿ οὐκ ἐν σοφίᾳ σαρκικῇ ἀνεστράφησαν ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ». Ἀποκριθήσονταί σοι τοίνυν εὐλαβῶς ὡς «οὐκ ἐν τῇ καθ᾿ ἡμᾶς γνώσει περιγράφεται τά θεῖα, ὦ ἄνθρωπε, πολλά δέ τῶν ὑφ᾿ ἡμῶν ἀγνοουμένων αἰτίας ἔχει θεοπρεπεῖς˙ πνευματικοῖς οὖν πνευματικά συγκρίνοντες, κατά τόν αὐτόν ἀπόστολον, ἐκ τῆς παλαιᾶς διαθήκης τάς τῆς καινῆς βεβαιωσόμεθα χάριτας». ∆ιά τοῦτο δέ σύγκρισιν τήν ἐκ τῶν παλαιῶν ἀπόδειξιν ὁ ἀπόστολος ὠνόμασεν, ἐπεί μετά τῆς ἐκεῖθεν βεβαιώσεως καί μείζω δείκνυται τῶν νομικῶν τά τῆς χάριτος δόματα. Καί τοίνυν ἐροῦσιν οἱ πνεύματι καί ζῶντες καί ὁρῶντες πρός τούς ἐρωτῶντας πῶς ὁρᾶται τό ἀόρατον φῶς˙ «ὡς καί ὁ θεόπτης ἐκεῖνος ἑώρακεν Ἠλίας˙ ὅτι γάρ οὐκ αἰσθητῶς ἐκεῖνος εἶδεν ἔδειξεν ἡ ἐπιτεθειμένη τῷ προσώπῳ μηλωτή˙ ὅτι δέ τόν Θεόν ἑώρακε, τῇ μηλωτῇ τούς αἰσθητούς ἐπηλυγάσας ὀφθαλμούς, μάρτυς τε καί κῆρυξ ἀξιόλογος τό παρά πᾶσι τούτου τῆς ἐπωνυμίας γνώρισμα˙ θεόπτης γάρ, μᾶλλον δέ καί μεθ᾿ ὑπερβολῆς θεοπτικώτατος, ἀκούει παρά πάντων».

(σελ. 202) Κἄν αὖθις ἔρηταί τις τούς τοιούτους, «τί δ᾿ ὅ φατε μυστικῶς ἐνηχεῖν ἡμῖν τήν εὐχήν ἐν τοῖς ἐγκάτοις καί τί τό τήν καρδίαν συγκινοῦν», τόν αὐτοῦ πάλιν τοῦ Ἠλιού προβαλοῦνται συσσεισμόν, προοίμιον ὄντα τῆς ἐμφανοῦς νοερᾶς Θεοῦ ἐπιφανείας, καί τήν ἠχοῦσαν κοιλίαν Ἠσΐου. Τῷ δέ προσερομένῳ, «τίς δέ καί ἡ ἀπό τῆς εὐχῆς ἐγγινομένη θέρμη», τό πῦρ ὑποδείξουσιν, ὅ φησιν αὐτός αὖθις ὁ Ἠλίας, σημεῖον μέν Θεοῦ, ὅσον οὔπω ἐμφανιζομένου, δεόμενον δ᾿ ἔτι τῆς πρός αὔραν λεπτήν μεταποιήσεως, εἰ μέλλει ἐν ἑαυτῷ τήν θείαν δεξάμενον ἀκτῖνα τῷ προσορῶντι δείξειν τόν ἀόρατον, καί αὐτόν δέ τόν Ἠλίαν ὡς πῦρ τε ὄντα καί φαινόμενον καί πύρινον ἀναβαίνοντα ἅρμα μετά σώματος, ἀλλά καί τόν ὡς ὑπό πυρός καιόμενον τά σπλάγχνα ἕτερον προφήτην, καί ταῦτα τοῦ λόγου τοῦ Θεοῦ ὡς πῦρ γενομένου ἐν αὐτῷ. Κἄν ἄλλο τι τῶν ἐν αὐτοῖς μυστικῶς ἐνεργουμένων ἐξετάζῃς, ἐκεῖνοι τοῖς ὁμοίοις πνευματικοῖς συγκρίνοντες, ὡς ἔφημεν, τά παραπλήσιά σοι δείξουσι καί κοινῇ πρός πάντα φήσουσι˙ οὐκ ἀκούεις, ἄνθρωπε, ὅτι «ἄρτον ἀγγέλων ἔφαγεν ἄνθρωπος»; Οὐκ ἀκούεις τοῦ Κυρίου λέγοντος ὅτι δώσει Πνεῦμα ἅγιον τοῖς αἰτοῦσιν αὐτόν ἡμέρας καί νυκτός; Τίς οὖν ὁ τῶν ἀγγέλων ἄρτος; Οὐ τό θεῖον καί ὑπερουράνιον φῶς ᾧ εἴτε κατ᾿ ἐπιβολήν εἴτε κατά παραδοχήν ὑπέρ νοῦν οἱ νόες ἑνοῦνται, κατά τόν μέγαν ∆ιονύσιον; Τούτου τοίνυν τοῦ φωτός τήν εἰς ἀνθρώπους ἔλλαμψιν προϋπέγραψεν μέν ὁ Θεός ἐπί τεσσαρακονταετῆ χρόνον ἄνωθεν τό μάννα καθιείς, ἐπλήρωσε δέ ὁ Χριστός, τοῖς βεβαίως εἰς αὐτόν πιστεύουσι καί δι᾿ ἔργων τήν πίστιν ἐπιδεικνυμένοις ἐνιείς τόν φωτισμόν τοῦ Πνεύματος καί τό φωτιστικόν αὐτοῦ σῶμα προτιθέμενος εἰς βρῶσιν˙ καί τοῦτο γάρ ἀρραβών ἐστι τῆς ἀπορρήτου κατά τό μέλλον Ἰησοῦ κοινωνίας. Εἰ δέ καί ἄλλο τι τῶν ἡμῖν ἀπό Χριστοῦ δεδωρημένων προϋπέγραψαν ἐκεῖνα, θαυμαστόν (σελ. 204) οὐδέν. Ἀλλ᾿ ὁρᾷς ὅτι καί ἀπό τῶν συμβολικῶν ἐκείνων φωτισμῶν ἀναφαίνεται φωτισμός τις νοερός καί μυστήρια ἕτερα παρά τήν γνῶσιν;

Ἐπεί δέ αἰσθητόν ἔφης λέγειν φῶς τό φανέν ἐν Θαβωρίῳ τούς τό θεῖον τῆς χάριτος ἀπωθουμένους φῶς, πρῶτον μέν ἐρωτήσομεν αὐτούς εἰ θεολογοῦσι τό περιαστράψαν τηνικαῦτα φῶς ἐν Θαβορίῳ τούς τῶν μαθητῶν ἐκκρίτους. Εἰ γάρ μή θεολογοῦσιν, ἐλέγξει μέν αὐτούς ὁ Πέτρος, ἐν μέν τῷ ὄρει κατά Μάρκον διαγρηγορήσας καί ἰδών τήν δόξαν Χριστοῦ, ἐν δέ τῇ δευτέρᾳ τῶν ἐπιστολῶν αὐτός γράφων ἐποπτεῦσαι τήν μεγαλειότητα αὐτοῦ, σύν αὐτῷ ὤν ἐν τῷ ὄρει τῷ ἁγίῳ˙ ἐπιστομίσει δέ αὐτούς λαμπρῶς ὁ χρυσῇ γλώττῃ τά εὐαγγελικά κηρύγματα διασαφῶν˙ φησί γάρ, «λαμπρότερος ἑαυτοῦ ἐφαίνετο ὁ Κύριος, Τοῦ μέν σώματος