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but are attendants and slaves of this tyranny, each of them in succession not a master of the stored-up things and possessions, but becomes a wicked slave and guard. How then, if from such possessions, either out of fear of threatened punishments or in hope of receiving a hundredfold or bent by the misfortunes of men, they bring out a few things or even everything and give them to those who until then were overlooked in their distress and want, will they be counted as merciful, or as having fed Christ, or as having done a deed worthy of reward? In no way, but as I say, they even owe repentance until death, for the things which for years they held and deprived their brothers of their use.

And how is it that we who have seemingly become poor, just as Christ the God, being rich, became poor for our sake, think that by having mercy on ourselves we have mercy on the one who for our sake became as we are? Understand well what is being said. God became a poor man for your sake; you too, who believe in him, ought to become poor like him. He was poor according to his humanity, you are poor according to his Divinity. Consider then how you will feed him, pay close attention. He became poor that you might become rich, that he might impart to you the riches of his grace; for this reason he took on flesh, that you might partake of his Divinity. So when you prepare yourself for his reception, then he is said to be received by you. And when for his sake you hunger and thirst, (173) these things are counted as food and drink for him. How? Because through these and such deeds and actions you cleanse your soul and deliver yourself from the hunger and filth of the passions; and God, who has thus accepted you and made all things concerning you his own, and desires to make you a god, just as he became a man, considers that what you do to yourself, he suffers these things, and says: "Inasmuch as you did it to your own least soul, you did it to me."

For by what other works did those in caves and mountains please God, if not surely through love and repentance and faith—for having left all the world and followed him alone, through repentance and tears they both received him and gave him lodging, they both fed him and gave him drink when he was thirsty, and how else is it that all who from holy baptism are called sons of God are also the least according to the world and poor? Those, therefore, who have known with the perception of their soul that they have become sons of God, no longer endure being adorned with the corruptible world, for they are clothed with Christ. For what man, robed in royal purple, would ever consent to put on a filthy and torn tunic over it? But those who do not know this and are naked of the royal garment, but have been zealous through repentance and the other good works, as we said, and have thus put on Christ, they clothe Christ himself; for they themselves also, as sons of God from divine baptism, become christs. But if they will not do this, but clothe all the naked in the world, while leaving themselves naked, (174) what have they profited? Then again, we who have been baptized into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit are called brothers of Christ; and not only this, but we are also his members. Being then his brother and member, if you honor, offer hospitality to, and care for all others, but neglect yourself and do not strive through all things to ascend to the summit of the life and honor according to God, but through the hunger of sloth or the thirst of indolence or the most narrow prison of this filthy body through gluttony or love of pleasure you leave your own soul filthy, squalid, lying in the deepest darkness as if dead, have you not insulted the brother of Christ? Have you not him hungering and

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δέ ὑπηρέται καί δοῦλοι τῆς τυράννους ταύτης, κατά διαδοχήν ἕκαστος αὐτῶν οὐ δεσπότης τῶν ἀποκειμένων πραγμάτων καί χρημάτων, ἀλλά πονηρός τις δοῦλος καί φύλαξ γίνεται. Πῶς οὖν, εἰ ἐκ τῶν τοιούτων χρημάτων ἤ φόβῳ τῶν ἀπειλουμένων τιμωριῶν ἤ ἐλπίδι τοῦ ἑκατονταπλασίονα λήψεσθαι ἤ συμφοραῖς ἀνθρώπων ἐπικαμφθέντες, ὀλίγα τινά ἤ και πάντα ἐξενεγκόντες, τοῖς ἐν στενοχωρίᾳ καί ὑστερήσει μέχρι τότε παρεωραμένοις δώσουσιν, ἐλεήμονες λογισθήσονται, ἤ ὡς Χριστόν θρέψαντες ἤ ὡς ποιήσαντες ἔργον μισθοῦ ἄξιον; Οὐδαμῶς, ἀλλ᾿ ὡς ἐγώ φημι, καί μετάνοιαν χρεωστοῦσι μέχρι θανάτου, ὑπέρ ὧν ἐπί χρόνοις ταῦτα κατέσχον καί τούς ἀδελφούς τήν χρῆσιν αὐτῶν ἀπεστέρησαν.

Πῶς δέ καί οἱ κατά τό δοκεῖν πτωχοί γεγονότες ὥσπερ Χριστός ὁ Θεός, πλούσιος ὤν, ἐπτώχευσε δι᾿ ἡμᾶς, αὐτούς ἡμᾶς ἐλεοῦντες τόν δι᾿ ἡμᾶς γενόμενον ὡς ἡμεῖς ἐλεεῖν λογιζόμεθα; Νόει μοι καλῶς τό λεγόμενον. Ἐγένετο ὁ Θεός διά σέ πτωχός ἄνθρωπος, γενέσθαι χρεωστεῖς καί σύ, ὁ πιστεύων εἰς αὐτόν, ὅμοιος ἐκείνῳ πτωχός. Πτωχός ἐκεῖνος κατά τήν ἀνθρωπότητα, πτωχός σύ κατά τήν Θεότητα. Σκόπησον τοίνυν πῶς θρέψεις αὐτόν, πρόσεχε ἀκριβῶς. Ἐπτώχευσεν ἵνα σύ πλουτήσῃς, ἵνα σοί μεταδῷ τοῦ πλούτου τῆς χάριτος αὐτοῦ· διά τοῦτο σάρκα ἀνέλαβεν ἐκεῖνος, ἵνα μεταλάβῃς σύ τῆς ἐκείνου Θεότητος. Ὅταν γοῦν σεαυτόν πρός ὑποδοχήν αὐτοῦ εὐτρεπίσῃς, τότε ὑποδεχθήσεσθαι αὐτόν ὑπό σοῦ λέγεται. Ὅταν δέ δι᾿ ἐκεῖνον πεινᾷς σύ καί διψᾷς, (173) τροφή ἐκείνῳ καί πόσις ταῦτα λογίζεται. Πῶς; Ὅτι διά τούτων καί τῶν τοιούτων ἔργων καί πράξεων καθαίρεις σου τήν ψυχήν καί τοῦ λιμοῦ καί τοῦ ῥύπου τῶν παθῶν ἀπαλλάττεις σαυτόν· καί ὁ ἀναδεξάμενός σε οὕτω καί ἰδιοποιησάμενος τά κατά σέ πάντα Θεός καί θεόν σε ποιῆσαι ἐπιποθῶν, ὡς ἐκεῖνος ἐγένετο ἄνθρωπος, ἅπερ ποιεῖς σεαυτῷ, ἐκεῖνος ταῦτα πανθάνειν λογίζεται καί λέγει· "Ἐφ᾿ ὅσον ἐποίησας τῇ ἐλαχίστῃ ψυχῇ σου, ἐμοί ἐποίησας".

∆ιά ποίων γάρ ἄλλων ἔργων οἱ ἐν σπηλαίοις καί ὄρεσι τῷ Θεῷ εὐηρέστησαν, εἰ μή δι᾿ ἀγάπης πάντως καί μετανοίας καί πίστεως - πάντα γάρ τόν κόσμον ἀφέντες καί αὐτῷ μόνῳ ἀκολουθήσαντες, διά μετανοίας καί δακρύων ἐδέξαντό τε αὐτόν καί ἐξένισαν, ἔθρεψάν τε καί διψῶντα ἐπότισαν , ἄλλως δέ πάντες πάντως οἵ ἐκ τοῦ ἁγίου βαπτίσματος υἱοί Θεοῦ χρηματίζουσιν, ἐλάχιστοι δέ καί κατά κόσμον εἰσί καί πτωχοί; Οἱ οὖν γνόντες ἐν αἰσθήσει ψυχῆς ὅτι υἱοί γεγόνασι τοῦ Θεοῦ, οὐκέτι ἀνέχονται κόσμῳ καλλωπισθῆναι φθαρτῷ, ἐνδεδυμένοι γάρ εἰσι τόν Χριστόν. Τίς δέ ἀνθρώπων καταδέξεταί ποτε, πορφύρᾳ βασιλικῇ ἐστολισμένος, ῥυπῶντα και διερρωγότα χιτῶνα ἐπάνω ταύτης ἐνδύσασθαι; Οἱ δέ μή τοῦτο εἰδότες καί γυμνοί τοῦ βασιλικοῦ ὄντες ἐνδύματος, σπουδάσαντες δέ διά μετανοίας καί τῶν ἄλλων, ὡς εἴπομεν, ἀγαθοεργιῶν καί ἐνδυσάμενοι οὕτω τόν Χριστόν, αὐτόν ἐκεῖνον ἐνδύουσι τόν Χριστόν· χριστοί γάρ καί αὐτοί, ὡς υἱοί Θεοῦ ἀπό τοῦ θείου βαπτίσματος, πέλουσιν. Εἰ δέ μή τοῦτο ποιήσουσιν, ἀλλά τούς γυμνούς μέν ἅπαντας, τούς ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ, ἐνδύσουσιν, ἑαυτούς δέ γυμνούς καταλείψουσι, (174) τί ὠφέλησαν; Εἶτα πάλιν, ἀδελφοί Χριστοῦ οἱ βαπτισθέντες εἰς τό ὄνομα τοῦ Πατρός καί τοῦ Υἱοῦ καί τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος λεγόμεθα· καί οὐ τοῦτο μόνον, ἀλλά καί μέλη ἐσμέν αὐτοῦ. Ἀδελφός οὖν ὑπάρχων αὐτοῦ καί μέλος, ἐάν πάντας μέν ἄλλους τιμήσῃς, ξενίσῃς, θεραπεύσῃς, σεαυτόν δέ παρίδῃς καί διά πάντων οὐκ ἀγωνίσῃ εἰς τό ἀκρότατον τῆς κατά Θεόν πολιτείας καί τιμῆς ἀνελθεῖν, ἀλλά λιμῷ ὀκνηρίας ἤ δίψει ῥᾳθυμίας ἤ φυλακῇ στενωτάτῃ τοῦδε τοῦ ῥυπαροῦ σώματος διά γαστριμαργίας ἤ φιληδονίας τήν σεαυτοῦ ψυχήν καταλείψῃς ῥυπῶσαν, αὐχμῶσαν, ἐν βαθυτάτῳ σκότει κειμένην ὡσεί νεκράν, οὐχί τόν τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐνύβρισας ἀδελφόν; Οὐχί πεινῶντα αὐτόν καί