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of the Gospel praises? Who is your fellow servant and minister in the Lord. However, if someone is praised for the beauty of their body, 29.356 or the distinction of their parents, their soul is not praised in the Lord, but each of such people is in vanity. For not even the intermediate arts have that which is truly praiseworthy: pilots, physicians, orators, or architects building cities or pyramids, or labyrinths, or any other costly or immense constructions of buildings. Those who are praised for these things do not have their soul in the Lord. It is sufficient for us for all dignity to be called servants of so great a Master. For surely someone serving a king will be proud because he has been placed in this rank of service; but when deemed worthy to serve God, will he devise praises for himself from another source, as if the invocation of the Lord were not sufficient for him for every excess of glory and distinction? In the Lord, therefore, my soul shall be praised. Let the meek hear, and be glad. Since without war, he says, my salvation was accomplished by the mere alteration of my countenance, through the cooperation of God by which the enemies were deceived; Let the meek hear, that it is possible even for those who are at rest to raise a trophy, and for those who do not fight to be shown as victors; And let them be glad, being confirmed in meekness by my example. For I received this grace from God, because I achieved meekness. Remember, O Lord, David and all his meekness. For meekness is the greatest of the virtues; for this reason it has also been included in the beatitudes. For blessed, he says, are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. For that land, the heavenly Jerusalem, does not become the spoil of those who fight, but is set forth as an inheritance for long-suffering and meek men. And, Let the meek hear, is equivalent to, Let the disciples of Christ hear. Perhaps he prophetically wishes the wonder of God's kindness to him to pass down even to us. For let those hear who are to become disciples of Christ many generations later. For these he named meek, to whom the Lord says: Learn from me, for I am meek and lowly in heart. Those who are of settled character and free from all passion, so as to have no disturbance dwelling in their souls, these are called meek. For this reason Moses is also testified to be meek, beyond all men on the earth. Magnify the Lord with me. He takes to himself a fitting chorus for the doxology of the Lord. 29.357 Let no one who is turbulent, nor disturbed, nor maddened in soul by the passions of the flesh be mixed with me; but you, the meek, who have achieved the firm and stable state of the soul, and who shake off what is sluggish and sleepy towards the performance of duties, you magnify the Lord with me. And he magnifies the Lord who with a great mind and proud and exalted spirit endures temptations for the sake of piety. Then also he who with a great mind and with the deepest contemplations beholds the magnitudes of creation, so that from the greatness and beauty of the creatures he may contemplate their Creator. For the more one delves into the principles according to which things came to be, and according to which they are ordered, the more one beholds the magnificence of the Lord, and as far as is in his power, magnifies the Lord. Since, therefore, one mind and the study of one man is not sufficient, even for a short time, for the comprehension of the great things of God, he takes all the meek together into the fellowship of this activity. For one must be at complete leisure from external disturbances, and having made complete quiet in the secret council-chamber of the heart, thus apply oneself to the contemplation of the truth. Do you hear what the one confessing his sin says? My eye was troubled by anger. And not only anger, but also desire, and cowardice, and envy the eye of the soul

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τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου ἐπαινεῖ; Ὅς ἐστι σύνδουλος καὶ διάκονος ὑμῶν ἐν Κυρίῳ. Ἐὰν μέντοι τις ἐπὶ σώματος 29.356 κάλλει, ἢ γονέων περιφανείᾳ ἐπαινεῖται, οὐκ ἐν Κυ ρίῳ ἐπαινεῖται αὐτοῦ ἡ ψυχὴ, ἀλλ' ἐν τῇ ματαιότητί ἐστι τῶν τοιούτων ἕκαστος. Οὐδὲ γὰρ αἱ μέσαι τέ χναι τὸ ἀληθινῶς ἐπαινετὸν ἔχουσι, κυβερνῆται, ἰατροὶ, ῥήτορες, ἢ ἀρχιτέκτονες πόλεις οἰκοδομοῦντες ἢ πυραμίδας, ἢ λαβυρίνθους, ἢ ἄλλας τινὰς δαπανη ρὰς ἢ ὑπερόγκους οἰκοδομημάτων κατασκευάς. Οἱ ἐπὶ τούτοις ἐπαινούμενοι, οὐκ ἐν Κυρίῳ ἔχουσι τὴν ἑαυτῶν ψυχήν. Ἀρκεῖ ἡμῖν πρὸς ἅπαν ἀξίωμα τὸ τηλικούτου ∆εσπότου δούλους ἡμᾶς ὀνομάζεσθαι. Οὐ δήπου γὰρ βασιλεῖ μέν τις ὑπηρετῶν μέγα φρο νήσει, διὰ τὸ ἐν τῇδε τῇ τάξει τῆς ὑπηρεσίας τε τάχθαι· Θεῷ δὲ καταξιωθεὶς λατρεύειν, ἀλλαχόθεν τοὺς ἐπαίνους ἑαυτῷ περινοήσει, ὡς οὐκ ἀρκούσης αὐτῷ τῆς ἐπικλήσεως τοῦ Κυρίου πρὸς πᾶσαν δόξης καὶ περιφανείας ὑπερβολήν; Ἐν τῷ Κυρίῳ οὖν ἐπαι νεθήσεται ἡ ψυχή μου. Ἀκουσάτωσαν πραεῖς, καὶ εὐφρανθήτωσαν. Ἐπειδὴ ἄνευ πολέμου, φησὶ, κατωρθώθη μοι ἡ σωτηρία ἐκ μόνης τῆς κατὰ πρόσωπον ἀλλοιώσεως, διὰ τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ συνεργίας ἀπατηθέντων τῶν πολεμίων· Ἀκουσάτωσαν πραεῖς, ὅτι δυνατὸν καὶ ἡσυχάζοντας ἐγεῖραι τρόπαιον, καὶ μὴ μαχομένους νικητὰς ἀποφανθῆναι· Καὶ εὐφραν θήτωσαν, βεβαιούμενοι εἰς τὴν πραότητα τῷ κατ' ἐμὲ ὑποδείγματι. Ἔλαβον γὰρ ταύτην τὴν χάριν παρὰ Θεοῦ, ἐπειδὴ κατώρθωσα τὴν πραότητα. Μνή σθητι, Κύριε, τοῦ ∆αβὶδ καὶ πάσης τῆς πραότητος αὐτοῦ. Μεγίστη γὰρ τῶν ἀρετῶν ἡ πραότης· διὸ καὶ τοῖς μακαρισμοῖς ἐγκατείλεκται. Μακάριοι γὰρ, φησὶν, οἱ πραεῖς, ὅτι αὐτοὶ κληρονομήσουσι τὴν γῆν. Ἐκείνη γὰρ ἡ γῆ, ἡ ἐπουράνιος Ἱερουσαλὴμ, οὐ γίνεται τῶν μαχομένων λάφυρον, ἀλλὰ μακροθύμων καὶ πραϋπαθῶν ἀνδρῶν πρόκειται κληρονομία. Ἴσον δὲ δύναται τὸ, Ἀκουσάτωσαν πραεῖς, καὶ τὸ, Ἀκουσάτωσαν οἱ Χριστοῦ μαθηταί. Τάχα δὲ προ φητικῶς βούλεται μέχρις ἡμῶν διαβῆναι τὸ θαῦμα τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ εἰς αὐτὸν εὐεργεσίας. Ἀκουσάτωσαν γὰρ οἱ πολλαῖς ὕστερον γενεαῖς γενήσεσθαι τοῦ Χρι στοῦ μαθηταὶ μέλλοντες. Τούτους γὰρ ὠνόμασε πραεῖς, οἷς ὁ Κύριος διαλέγεται· Μάθετε ἀπ' ἐμοῦ, ὅτι πραΰς εἰμι καὶ ταπεινὸς τῇ καρδίᾳ. Οἱ κατεσταλμένοι τὰ ἤθη καὶ παντὸς πάθους ἀπηλλαγμένοι, ὡς μηδεμίαν ἔχειν ταραχὴν ἐνοικοῦσαν αὐτῶν ταῖς ψυχαῖς, οὗτοι πραεῖς προσαγορεύονται. ∆ιὸ καὶ Μωϋσῆς μεμαρτύρηται πραῢς εἶναι παρὰ πάντας ἀνθρώπους ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς. Μεγαλύνατε τὸν Κύριον σὺν ἐμοί. Πρέποντα ἑαυτῷ χορὸν εἰς δοξολογίαν τοῦ Κυρίου παραλαμβά 29.357 νει. Μηδεὶς ταραχώδης, μηδὲ τεθορυβημένος, μηδὲ ἐκ τῶν παθῶν τῆς σαρκὸς τὴν ψυχὴν παροιστρῶν ἐγκαταμιγήτω μοι· ἀλλ' ὑμεῖς οἱ πραεῖς, οἱ τὸ βεβη κὸς καὶ εὐσταθὲς τῆς ψυχῆς κατωρθωκότες, τὸ δὲ νωθρὸν καὶ ὑπνῶδες πρὸς τὰς τῶν καθηκόντων ἐνερ γείας ἀποσειόμενοι, ὑμεῖς μεγαλύνατε τὸν Κύριον σὺν ἐμοί. Μεγαλύνει δὲ τὸν Κύριον ὁ μεγάλῃ διανοίᾳ καὶ γαύρῳ τῷ φρονήματι καὶ ἐπηρμένῳ τοὺς ὑπὲρ τῆς εὐσεβείας πειρασμοὺς ὑπομένων. Ἔπειτα δὲ καὶ ὁ μεγάλῃ τῇ διανοίᾳ καὶ θεωρήμασι βαθυτάτοις τὰ μεγέθη τῆς κτίσεως καθορῶν, ἵν' ἐκ τοῦ μεγέθους καὶ τῆς καλλονῆς τῶν κτισμάτων τὸν γενεσιουρ γὸν αὐτῶν θεωρήσῃ. Ὅσῳ γάρ τις ἐπὶ πλεῖον ἐμβαθύνει τοῖς λόγοις καθ' οὓς γεγένηται τὰ ὄντα, καὶ καθ' οὓς οἰκονομεῖται, τοσούτῳ μᾶλλον θεωρεῖ τὴν μεγαλοπρέπειαν τοῦ Κυρίου, καὶ τὸ ὅσον ἐφ' ἑαυτῷ, μεγαλύνει τὸν Κύριον. Ἐπεὶ οὖν εἷς νοῦς καὶ ἑνὸς ἀνδρὸς μελέτη, οὐδὲ πρὸς βραχὺ αὐταρκεῖ πρὸς τὴν τῶν μεγαλείων τοῦ Θεοῦ κατάληψιν, πάντας ὁμοῦ τοὺς πραεῖς εἰς τὴν κοινωνίαν ταύτης τῆς ἐνερ γείας παραλαμβάνει. ∆εῖ γὰρ πᾶσαν σχολὴν ἄγειν ἀπὸ θορύβων τῶν ἔξωθεν, καὶ πᾶσαν ἡσυχίαν ἐν τῷ κρυπτῷ τῆς καρδίας βουλευτηρίῳ ποιήσαντα, οὕτως ἐπιβάλλειν τῇ θεωρίᾳ τῆς ἀληθείας. Ἀκούεις τοῦ ἐξομολογουμένου τὴν ἁμαρτίαν, τί φησιν; Ἐτα ράχθη ἀπὸ θυμοῦ ὁ ὀφθαλμός μου. Οὐ μόνον δὲ θυμὸς, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐπιθυμία, καὶ δειλία, καὶ φθόνος ὀφθαλμὸν ψυχῆς