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44

O ignorance and madness and darkness! Do you not shudder, do you not fear? (104) For from your words you both will be condemned by the just and impartial judge. For to those who say that the saints do not see or know one another, but see only Him, being wholly united to Him with all their senses, He will somehow speak and say: "Did you know me, O you? Did you see my light? Did you receive me in you? Did you learn the energies of my Holy Spirit by experience itself, or not?" They will not dare, I think, to speak in reply and say: "Yes, Master." For if they say this, He will retort to them: "How then, if you have had experience of these things, do you say that those who will have me in themselves do not know one another? I am the God who does not lie, the true God, the holy God, who dwells in the saints. How then do I dwell in them? Just as I said that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, so also the saints are in me and I in them; and just as the Father is in me and I in turn am in my Father, so also I will be dwelling in all the saints and all the saints will dwell in me." And in addition to these things He will also say this: "If therefore I am in my saints and my saints are in me, I am in my Father and my Father is in me, and as the Father knows me and I know the Father, it is evident that the saints also ought to recognize and know one another." But that this may be clearer, so that it will be plain even to the insensible, it is necessary to add and to say again: in all the saints Christ will be dwelling.

Therefore, when the books of the conscience of each person are opened, in the hearts and consciences of sinners will be found, if nothing else, conceit or vainglory or heresy or zeal or envy or something of the sort; or if not, then at least carelessness, laziness, and the failure to carry out (105) the commandments of God with all one's strength, from which there will be a lack of His love. Therefore "their eyes will be darkened so that they cannot see," and they will be put to shame and will hear: "Inasmuch as you did not do one of my least commandments, but despised it, you did not do it for me. Depart from me into the eternal fire, prepared for the devil and his angels. " But when the books of the conscience of the saints are opened, pay attention! Christ the God, who is now hidden in them, will shine forth, as He shone forth from the Father before the ages, and the saints will be like the Most High. From where is this clear? Hear the Savior Himself saying this: "Then the righteous will shine like the sun." And what other time or sun does He mean, if not entirely the one we have spoken of, and Himself, who alone is called the sun of righteousness and who rises and shines forth only in the righteous? And this the beloved disciple of Christ who leaned on His breast makes more clearly evident, saying: "Brothers, now we are children of God, but it has not yet been revealed what we shall be; but we know that, if He is revealed, we shall be like Him." And Paul: "Now I know in part, but then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known."

If, then, the saints are like God and will know God as much as God knew them, and as the Father knows the Son and the Son the Father, so the saints also ought to see and know one another, but also those who have never seen each other physically in this world ought to know one another then, why do you not blush to speak and ask and teach about things you do not know, (106) as if you have already been enriched with knowledge beyond us and appointed teachers from above? For just as the Father will never be ignorant of the Son nor the Son of the Father, so neither will the saints, who have become gods by adoption in having God dwelling in themselves, ever be ignorant of one another, but they will be seeing each other's and their own glory, as the Son sees the Father's and the Father the Son's. And what and of what kind will be the glory of the saints? It is like that of the Son of God. And this

44

Ὤ ἄγνοια καί μανία καί σκότωσις! Οὐ φρίττετε, οὐ φοβεῖσθε; (104) Ἐκ γάρ τῶν λόγων ὑμῶν ἀμφότεροι καταδικασθήσεσθε παρά τοῦ δικαίου καί ἀπροσωπολήπτου κριτοῦ. Πρός γάρ τούς λέγοντας μή ὁρᾶν μηδέ γνωρίζειν ἀλλήλους τούς ἁγίους, ἀλλά μόνον ἐκεῖνον ὁρᾶν, ταῖς αἰσθήσεσι πάσαις ὅλους ὅλῳ δῆθεν ἑνουμένους ἐκείνῳ, φθέγξεταί πως καί εἴπῃ· "Ἔγνωτέ με, ὦ οὗτοι; Εἴδετέ μου τό φῶς; Ἐνδέξασθέ με ἐν ὑμῖν; Τάς ἐνεργείας τοῦ Πνεύματός μου τοῦ Ἁγίου αὐτῇ τῇ πείρᾳ ἐμάθετε ἤ οὔ;" Οἵ οὐ μή τολμήσωσιν ἀντιφθέγξασθαι, οἶμαι, καί εἰπεῖν· "Ναί, φησί, ∆έσποτα". Εἰ γάρ τοῦτο ἐροῦσιν, ἀντερεῖ πρός αὐτούς· "Πῶς οὖν, εἰ τούτων ἐν πείρᾳ γεγόνατε, τούς ἐμέ ἐν ἑαυτοῖς ἔχειν μέλλοντας μή γνωρίζειν ἀλλήλους λέγετε; Ἐγώ Θεός ἀψευδής, Θεός ἀληθινός, Θεός ἅγιος, ὁ ἐν ἁγίοις ἐγκατοικῶν. Πῶς οὖν ἐν αὐτοῖς κατοικῶ; Ὥσπερ εἶπον ὅτι ἐγώ ἐν τῷ Πατρί καί ὁ Πατήρ ἐν ἐμοί, οὕτω καί οἱ ἅγιοι ἐν ἐμοί κἀγώ ἐν αὐτοῖς· καί καθάπερ ὁ Πατήρ ἐν ἐμοί κἀγώ πάλιν ἐν τῷ Πατρί μου, οὕτω καί ἐν τοῖς ἁγίοις πᾶσιν ἐγώ ἔσομαι κατοικῶν καί οἱ ἅγιοι πάντες κατοικήσουσιν ἐν ἐμοί". Πρός δέ τούτοις ἐρεῖ καί ταῦτα· "Εἰ τοίνυν ἐγώ ἐν τοῖς ἁγίοις μου καί οἱ ἅγιοί μου ἐν ἐμοί, ἐγώ ἐν τῷ Πατρί μου καί ὁ Πατήρ μου ἐν ἐμοί, καθώς δέ γινώσκει με ὁ Πατήρ κἀγώ γινώσκω τόν Πατέρα, εὔδηλον ὅτι καί οἱ ἅγιοι γνωρίζειν καί γινώσκειν ὀφείλουσιν". Ἵνα δέ σαφέστερον τοῦτο γένηται, ὡς ἄν δῆλον καί τοῖς ἀναισθήτοις ἔσται, χρεών προσθεῖναι καί ἔτι πάλιν εἰπεῖν· ἐν πᾶσι τοῖς ἁγίοις Χριστός ἐνοικῶν ἔσεται.

Ὁπόταν οὖν αἱ βίβλοι τοῦ συνειδότος ἑκάστου διανοιχθήσονται, ἐν μέν ταῖς τῶν ἁμαρτωλῶν καρδίαις καί συνειδήσεσιν εὑρεθήσονται, εἰ μή τι ἄλλο, οἴησις ἤ κενοδοξία ἤ αἵρεσις ἤ ζῆλος ἤ φθόνος ἤ τι τῶν τοιούτων· εἰ δ᾿ οὖν, ἀλλ᾿ ἀμέλεια, ῥαθυμία καί τό μή πάσῃ ἰσχύϊ ποιῆσαι (105) τάς τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐντολάς, ὅθεν ἔλλειψις ἔσται τῆς ἀγάπης αὐτοῦ. ∆ιά τοῦτο οὖν "σκοτισθήσονται οἱ ὀφθαλμοί αὐτῶν τοῦ μή βλέπειν" καί αἰσχυνθήσονται καί ἀκούσονται· "Ἐφ᾿ ὅσον οὐκ ἐποιήσατε μίαν τῶν ἐντολῶν μου τῶν ἐλαχίστων, ἀλλά ταύτης κατεφρονήσατε, ἐμοί οὐκ ἐποιήσατε. Ἀπέλθετε ἀπ᾿ ἐμοῦ εἰς τό πῦρ τό αἰώνιον, τό ἡτοιμασμένον τῷ διαβόλῳ καί τοῖς ἀγγέλοις αὐτοῦ ". Ἐν δέ τῷ διανοιγῆναι τάς τοῦ συνειδότος τῶν ἁγίων βίβλους, πρόσεχε! λάμψει ὁ νῦν ἀποκεκρυμμένος ἐν αὐτοῖς Χριστός ὁ Θεός, ὡς ἔλαμψε πρό τῶν αἰώνων ἐκ τοῦ Πατρός, καί ἔσονται οἱ ἅγιοι ὅμοιοι τῷ Ὑψίστῳ. Πόθεν τοῦτο δῆλον; Αὐτοῦ τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἄκουσον τοῦτο λέγοντος· "Τότε ἐκλάμψουσιν οἱ δίκαιοι ὡς ὁ ἥλιος". Ποῖον δέ ἄλλον λέγει καιρόν ἤ ἥλιον, εἰ μή πάντως ὅνπερ εἰρήκαμεν, καί ἑαυτόν τόν ἥλιον δικαιοσύνης μόνον ὀνομαζόμενον καί ἐν δικαίοις μόνον ἀνατέλλοντα καί ἐκλάμποντα; Καί τοῦτο ὁ ἐπιστήθιος καί Χριστοῦ μαθητής ἠγαπημένος ἐκδηλότερον διατρανοῖ λέγων· "Ἀδελφοί, νῦν τέκνα Θεοῦ ἐσμεν, ἀλλ᾿ οὔπω ἐφανερώθη τί ἐσόμεθα· οἴδαμεν δέ ὅτι, ἐάν φανερωθῇ, ὅμοιοι αὐτῷ ἐσόμεθα". Καί ὁ Παῦλος· "Νῦν γινώσκω ἐκ μέρους, τότε δέ ἐπιγνώσομαι, καθώς καί ἐπεγνώσθην".

Εἰ οὖν ὅμοιοι τοῦ Θεοῦ οἱ ἅγιοι καί τοσοῦτον ἐπιγνώσονται τόν Θεόν, ὅσον ὁ Θεός ἐπέγνω αὐτούς, καί καθώς γινώσκει ὁ Πατήρ τόν Υἱόν καί ὁ Υἱός τόν Πατέρα, οὕτως ὀφείλουσι καί οἱ ἅγιοι ἀλλήλους καί ὁρᾶν καί γινώσκειν, ἀλλά καί οἱ μηδέποτε ἀλλήλους σωματικῶς ἐν τῷδε τῷ κόσμῳ ἰδόντες τότε γνωρίζειν ἀλλήλους ὀφείλουσι, πῶς οὐκ ἐρυθριᾶτε περί ὧν οὐκ οἴδατε λέγειν καί ἐπερωτᾶν καί διδάσκειν, (106) ὡς ἤδη καί τῶν ὑπέρ ἡμᾶς τήν γνῶσιν δῆθεν πεπλουτηκότες καί ἄνωθεν προχειρισθέντες διδάσκαλοι; Ὥσπερ γάρ οὐδέποτε ἀγνοήσει ὁ Πατήρ τόν Υἱόν ἤ ὁ Υἱός τόν Πατέρα, οὕτως οὐδέ οἱ ἅγιοι, θέσει θεοί γεγονότες ἐν τῷ ἔχειν οἰκοῦντα ἐν ἑαυτοῖς τόν Θεόν, ἀλλήλους ποτέ ἀγνοήσουσιν, ἀλλά βλέποντες ἔσονται ἀλλήλων καί ἑαυτῶν τήν δόξαν, ὡς ὁ Υἱός τοῦ Πατρός καί ὁ Πατήρ τοῦ Υἱοῦ. Τίς δέ καί ὁποία ἔσται τῶν ἁγίων ἡ δόξα; Οἵα ἐστί τοῦ Υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ. Καί τοῦτο