John Chrysostom, Letters

continual dangers, and the successive attacks of robbers, and because of the scarcity of doctors, by none of these things am I prevented from continually remembering your grace; but the love, which from the beginning I have had both for you and for your house, this I keep flourishing even now, allowing it to fade neither by time, nor by the length of the road. For such is genuine love. And I beseech you, according to your understanding and piety, to bear all that happens nobly. For you know that from your earliest years until now you have passed through various and all kinds of trials, and you are able with ease to contend for the prize of patience, just as you have contended many times, and have laid up for yourself splendid crowns for these things. But if this is greater than those past, the crown is also greater. Let none of the dreadful things brought upon you trouble you; but the more the waves increase, and the greater the surge becomes, by so much expect a greater commerce, and rewards much more abundant than the toils, and greater, and more splendid. For the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For present things are a journey, both the good and the painful things of this life, and both are passed by in like manner, and none of them is stable or firm, but they imitate nature, appearing and passing by at the same time. Just as therefore travelers and wayfarers, whether they journey through meadows or through ravines, reap no pleasure from the one, nor endure grief from the other; for they are travelers, not citizens, passing by both, and hastening to their own fatherland; so I beseech you also, neither to gape at the bright things of the present life, nor to be overwhelmed by the painful ones, but to look to one thing only, how you may arrive at the common fatherland of us all with much confidence. Since this is the abiding and fixed and immortal good, but all other things are a flower of the grass and smoke, and if anything is more worthless than these. 100. To Asyncritia and those with her. I know your love and the disposition which you have been eager to have towards 52.665 us. And I continually wished to write; but the fear of the Isaurians, having walled off every road, does not allow us to find those who will serve us for this purpose. Whenever, therefore, we find them, we render to you the greeting that is owed, exhorting you in the usual way, to be neither alarmed nor troubled by these continual and successive trials. For if merchants and sailors on account of a little cargo cross such long seas, and dare so many waves; and soldiers too despise life itself for a perishable and short-lived wage, and while living they often battle with hunger, and are worn out by long journeys, and continually live in a foreign land, and afterwards many of them endure an untimely and violent death, reaping from this nothing small or great; when a heavenly prize is set forth, and after death the reward is greater and much more abundant, what pardon will they obtain who are faint-hearted, and do not despise life itself? Considering all these things, therefore, and that present things are smoke, and a dream, and all human prosperity is no better than spring leaves, which at once come into being and immediately wither, become higher than all such arrows. For it is possible, if you wish, to trample down also the phantasy of this life. Look to one thing only, how with much diligence you may be able to complete the afflicted way, which leads up to Him. 107. To Castus, Valerius, Diophantus, and Cyriacus, presbyters. What happens to gold when it is often tested by fire, this also is wont to happen to golden souls by trials. For the nature of the flame renders that material much more brilliant and purer, being with it for as much time as the law of the art permits; and those like gold

συνεχεῖς κινδύνους, καὶ τὰς ἐπαλλήλους τῶν λῃστῶν ἐφόδους, διά τε τὴν ἰατρῶν σπάνιν, οὐδενὶ τούτων κωλύομαι μεμνῆσθαί σου διηνεκῶς τῆς ἐμμελείας· ἀλλὰ τὴν ἀγάπην, ἣν ἐξ ἀρχῆς καὶ περὶ σὲ καὶ περὶ τὸν οἶκόν σου ἔσχηκα, ταύτην ἀκμάζουσαν διατηρῶ καὶ νῦν, οὐδὲν οὐδὲ ἀπὸ τοῦ χρόνου, οὐδὲ ἀπὸ τοῦ μήκους τῆς ὁδοῦ μαραίνεσθαι αὐτὴν ἀφείς. Τοιοῦτον γάρ ἐστι τὸ ἀγαπᾷν γνησίως. Καί σε παρακαλῶ κατὰ τὴν σύνεσίν σου καὶ τὴν εὐλάβειαν, φέρειν τὰ συμπίπτοντα ἅπαντα γενναίως. Οἶσθα γὰρ ὅτι ἐκ πρώτης ἡλικίας μέχρι τοῦ νῦν διὰ ποικίλων καὶ παντοδαπῶν σχεδὸν ὥδευσας πειρασμῶν, καὶ δύνασαι μετ' εὐκολίας τὸν τῆς ὑπομονῆς ἆθλον ἀγωνίζεσθαι, ὥσπερ οὖν καὶ ἠγωνίσω πολλάκις, καὶ λαμπροὺς ὑπὲρ τούτων σεαυτῇ προαπέθου τοὺς στεφάνους. Εἰ δὲ μείζων οὗτος τῶν παρελθόντων, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὁ στέφανος πλείων. Μηδὲν οὖν σε ταραττέτω τῶν ἐπαγομένων δεινῶν· ἀλλ' ὅσῳπερ ἂν αὔξηται τὰ κύματα, καὶ μεῖζον γένηται τὸ κλυδώνιον, τοσούτῳ μείζονα ἀνάμενε τὴν ἐμπορίαν, καὶ πολλῷ πλείονα τὰ ἔπαθλα τῶν ἱδρώτων, καὶ μείζονα, καὶ λαμπρότερα. Οὐ γὰρ ἄξια τὰ παθήματα τοῦ νῦν καιροῦ πρὸς τὴν μέλλουσαν δόξαν ἀποκαλύπτεσθαι εἰς ἡμᾶς. Ὁδὸς γὰρ τὰ παρόντα, καὶ τὰ χρηστὰ, καὶ τὰ λυπηρὰ τοῦ βίου τούτου, καὶ ἑκάτερα ὁμοίως παροδεύεται, καὶ οὐδὲν αὐτῶν πάγιον, οὐδὲ βεβηκὸς, ἀλλὰ μιμεῖται τὴν φύσιν, ὁμοῦ τε φαινόμενα, καὶ παρατρέχοντα. Καθάπερ οὖν ὁδῖται καὶ ὁδοιπόροι ἄν τε διὰ λειμώνων ὁδεύωσιν, ἄν τε διὰ φαράγγων, οὐδεμίαν οὐδὲ ἐντεῦθεν καρποῦνται τὴν ἡδονὴν, οὐδὲ ἐκεῖθεν ὑπομένουσι λύπην· ὁδῖται γάρ εἰσιν, οὐχὶ πολῖται, ἑκάτερα παρατρέχοντες, καὶ πρὸς τὴν πατρίδα τὴν ἑαυτῶν ἐπειγόμενοι· οὕτω παρακαλῶ καὶ ὑμᾶς μήτε πρὸς τὰ φαιδρὰ τοῦ παρόντος κεχηνέναι βίου, μήτε ὑπὸ τῶν λυπηρῶν καταβαπτίζεσθαι, ἀλλ' ἓν μόνον σκοπεῖν, ὅπως εἰς τὴν κοινὴν ἁπάντων ἡμῶν πατρίδα μετὰ πολλῆς παραγένησθε τῆς παῤῥησίας. Ἐπειδήπερ τοῦτό ἐστι τὸ μένον καὶ πεπηγὸς καὶ ἀθάνατον ἀγαθὸν, τὰ δὲ ἄλλα πάντα, ἄνθος χόρτου καὶ καπνὸς, καὶ εἴ τι τούτων εὐτελέστερον. Ρʹ. Ἀσυγκριτίᾳ καὶ ταῖς σὺν αὐτῇ. Οἶδα τὴν ἀγάπην ὑμῶν καὶ τὴν διάθεσιν ἣν περὶ 52.665 ἡμᾶς ἔχειν ἐσπουδάκατε. Καὶ συνεχῶς ἐβουλόμην ἐπιστέλλειν· ἀλλ' ὁ τῶν Ἰσαύρων φόβος, πᾶσαν ἀποτειχίσας ὁδὸν, οὐκ ἀφίησιν εὐπορεῖν τῶν πρὸς τοῦτο διακονησομένων ἡμῖν. Ἡνίκα γοῦν ἂν ἐπιτύχωμεν τούτων, τὴν ὀφειλομένην ἀποδιδόαμεν ὑμῖν πρόσρησιν, τὰ συνήθη παρακαλοῦντες ὑμᾶς, μηδὲν θορυβεῖσθαι μηδὲ ταράττεσθαι ὑπὸ τῶν συνεχῶν τούτων καὶ ἐπαλλήλων πειρασμῶν. Εἰ γὰρ ἔμποροι καὶ ναῦται φορτίων ὀλίγων ἕνεκεν οὕτω μακρὰ διαβαίνουσι πελάγη, καὶ τοσούτων κατατολμῶσι κυμάτων· καὶ στρατιῶται δὲ καὶ αὐτῆς καταφρονοῦσι τῆς ζωῆς ὑπὲρ ἐπικήρου καὶ βραχέος μισθοῦ, καὶ ζῶντες μὲν καὶ λιμῷ μάχονται πολλάκις, καὶ ὁδοιπορίαις μακραῖς κατατείνονται, καὶ διηνεκῶς ἐπὶ τῆς ἀλλοτρίας διάγουσιν, ὕστερον δὲ καὶ ἄωρον καὶ βίαιον πολλοὶ τούτων ὑπομένουσι θάνατον, οὐδὲν ἐντεῦθεν οὐ μικρὸν, οὐ μέγα καρπωσάμενοι· ὅταν οὐράνιος ὁ ἆθλος προκέηται, καὶ μετὰ τὴν τελευτὴν μείζων ἡ ἀντίδοσις καὶ πολλῷ πλείων, ποίας τεύξονται συγγνώμης οἱ καταμαλακιζόμενοι, καὶ μὴ καὶ αὐτῆς καταφρονοῦντες τῆς ζωῆς; Ταῦτ' οὖν ἅπαντα λογιζομένη, καὶ ὅτι καπνὸς τὰ παρόντα, καὶ ὄναρ, καὶ πᾶσα εὐημερία ἀνθρωπίνη φύλλων ἠρινῶν οὐδὲν ἄμεινον διάκειται, γινομένων τε ὁμοῦ καὶ μαραινομένων εὐθέως, ὑψηλοτέρα πάντων τῶν τοιούτων γίνου βελῶν. Ἔξεστι γὰρ, ἐὰν θέλῃς, καὶ τὴν βιωτικὴν καταπατῆσαι φαντασίαν. Ἓν σκόπει μόνον, ὅπως μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς σπουδῆς τὴν τεθλιμμένην ὁδὸν διανύσαι δυνηθῇς, τὴν πρὸς αὐτὸν ἀνάγουσαν. ΡΖʹ. Κάστῳ, Οὐαλερίῳ, ∆ιοφάντῳ, καὶ Κυριακῷ, πρεσβυτέροις. Ὃ συμβαίνει τῷ χρυσίῳ βασανιζομένῳ πολλάκις ὑπὸ πυρὸς, τοῦτο καὶ ταῖς χρυσαῖς εἴωθε προσγίνεσθαι ψυχαῖς ὑπὸ τῶν πειρασμῶν. Ἐκείνην τε γὰρ τὴν ὕλην λαμπροτέραν πολλῷ καὶ καθαρωτέραν ἡ τῆς φλογὸς ἀποφαίνει φύσις, ὁμιλοῦσα αὐτῇ χρόνον τοσοῦτον, ὅσον ἂν ὁ τῆς τέχνης ἐπιτρέπει νόμος· τούς τε τῷ χρυσίῳ