80

according to the "ascent", deification, perfect love, and an intellect utterly and willingly made void with regard to beings by transcendence. And again, they say that the work of all practical philosophy is to render the intellect pure of impassioned fantasy, while natural contemplation requires it to be knowledgeable of the true knowledge of the cause according to which beings exist, and theological mystagogy is to make it like and equal to God, as is possible, by grace in its state, being mindful of absolutely nothing after God because of transcendence.

P (80). ..».... «THAT NOT EVEN THE WORLD BELOW WOULD BE ABLE TO CONTAIN HIM..».

From the same discourse, on the text, “that not even the world below would be able to contain him, John, the forerunner of the Word, the great voice of truth, decreed.”

It was opportune for me also, towards this holy and great of truth

teacher, seeing the greatness of the wisdom given to him by God, to say what David, the most notable of prophets and kings, amazed at the infinite majesty of His (14∆_330> in all things, divinely inspired declared to God, saying: Your knowledge has been made wonderful to me, 1244 it has been strengthened, I cannot attain to it, as was just, having described the indescribable power especially by wonder alone, having nowhere else to rest the much-moved foundation of the soul concerning things unattainable; and for me, as I said, to be content to receive understanding and sanctification from wondering at the wise teacher, and not to be overly curious, how and for what reason contrary to history, the teacher transposes the names which the divine voice has mystically placed on the saints, here addressing John the son of thunder as the forerunner. But since the reward of obedience is also great, especially since the commandment bids us to obey our leaders, and to have leisure and to know and to search the Scriptures, and to meditate on the divine law day and night, I knew it lay especially among the things that are well-established, and suspecting the danger of both sloth and disobedience, I will speak conjecturally about these things according to my ability, trusting in your prayers, you who commanded this.

I think, therefore, that what was said contrary to history by this God-bearing teacher, who set forth the forerunner of Christ instead of the son of thunder, cannot be reconciled otherwise than according to spiritual contemplation. For this alone is the reconciliation of things that seem to contradict each other in history, as it reveals incorporeally the truth in all things, which is simple by nature, not being condensed with sounds or with bodies. Just as, therefore, John the great Baptist was called forerunner, in relation to the one truly expected, and a voice in relation to the Word, as preceding this declaratively, and a lamp in relation to the sun, as an artificial and posited and temporary light in relation to a natural and essential and uncreated and eternal and unquenchable light, and I think also as repentance, proclaiming the righteousness that existed by nature before it, but came after it by economy, so I think also here that this divinely-minded teacher, by speaking (14∆_332> of the great apostle John as forerunner, contrary to history, wished to intimate that also John the great evangelist in his own Gospel is the forerunner of the more mystical and greater Word revealed through him, which cannot be imprinted in letters nor spoken by the voice of a fleshly tongue.

For the writing of the holy gospels is an elementary instruction in relation to that which comes to be each time for those who are exalted through them, and who spiritually scrape off from themselves the thickness of the carnal mind, or also in relation to the knowledge that will come to be later, after the consummation of things in motion. For just as the law

80

κατά τήν "ἀνάληψιν" θέωσιν ἀγάπη τελεία, καί νοῦς τοῖς οὖσι καθ᾿ ὑπεροχήν πάμπαν ἑκουσίως πεπηρωμένος. Καί τῆς μέν πρακτικῆς φιλοσοφίας πάλιν ἔργον εἶναί φασι πάσης τόν νοῦν ἐμπαθῆ φαντασίας καθαρόν καταστῆσαι, τῆς δέ φυσικῆς θεωρίας τῆς ἐν τοῖς οὖσι καθ᾿ ἥν αἰτίαν ὑπάρχουσιν ἀληθοῦς γνώσεως αὐτόν ἐπιστήμονα δεῖται, τῆς δέ θεολογικῆς μυσταγωγίας ὅμοιον Θεῷ καί ἴσον, ὡς ἐφικτόν, τῇ χάριτι κατά τήν ἕξιν ποιῆσαι, μηδενός τό σύνολον ἔτι τῶν μετά Θεόν διά τήν ὑπεροχήν ὄντα νοήμονα.

Π (80). ..».... «ΟΥ∆ ΑΝ ΑΥΤΟΝ ∆ΥΝΗΘΗΝΑΙ ΧΩΡΗΣΑΙ ΤΟΝ ΚΑΤΩ ΚΟΣΜΟΝ..».

Ἐκ τοῦ αὐτοῦ λόγου, εἰς τό, «Οὐδ᾿ ἄν αὐτόν δυνηθῆναι χωρῆσαι τόν κάτω κόσμον, Ἰωάννης ὁ τοῦ Λόγου πρόδρομος, ἡ μεγάλη τῆς ἀληθείας φωνή, διωρίζετο».

Εὔκαιρον ἦν κἀμέ πρός τόν ἅγιον τοῦτον καί μέγαν τῆς ἀληθείας

διδάσκαλον, τό μέγεθος ὁρῶντα τῆς αὐτῷ παρά Θεοῦ δοθείσης σοφίας, εἰπεῖν ὅπερ ∆αβίδ, ὁ τῶν προφητῶν καί βασιλέων ἐπισημότατος, πρός τόν Θεόν, τό ἄπειρον τῆς ἐν πᾶσιν αὐτοῦ (14∆_330> μεγαλειότητος καταπλαγείς, ἐνθεαστικῶς ἀπεφθέγξατο, λέγων· Ἐθαυμαστώθη ἡ γνῶσίς σου ἐξ ἐμοῦ, 1244 ἐκραταιώθη, οὐ μή δύνωμαι πρός αὐτήν, ὡς ἦν δίκαιον, μάλιστα θαύματι μόνῳ περιγράψας τήν ἀπερίγραφον δύναμιν, οὐκ ἔχων ἄλλοθί ποι περί τῶν ἀνεφίκτων τῆς ψυχῆς ἐρεῖσαι τήν πολυκίνητον βάσιν· κἀμέ, ὡς εἶπον, ἀρκεῖσθαι τόν ἐκ τοῦ θαυμάζειν σοφοῦ διδασκάλου σύνεσιν ἁγιασμόν κομίσασθαι, καί μή πολυπραγμονεῖν, πῶς καί τίνι λόγῳ παρ᾿ ἱστορίαν, ἅπερ θεία φωνή τοῖς ἁγίοις μυστικῶς ὀνόματα τέθεικεν, ἀλλήλοις ὁ διδάσκαλος περιτρέπει, τόν υἱόν τῆς βροντῆς Ἰωάννην πρόδρομον ἐνταῦθα προσαγορεύων. Ἐπειδή δέ καί τῆς εὐπειθείας πολύς ἐστι ὁ μισθός, ἐντολῆς μάλιστα τοῖς ἡγουμένοις πείθεσθαι κελευούσης, καί σχολάσαι καί γνῶναι καί ἐρευνᾷν τάς Γραφάς, καί μελετᾷν τόν θεῖον νόμον ἡμέρας καί νυκτός, ἐν τοῖς εὖ ἔχουσι μάλιστα κείμενον ἔγνων, τοῦ τε ὄκνου καί τῆς ἀπειθείας τόν κίνδυνον ὑφορώμενος, στοχαστικῶς περί τούτων κατά δύναμιν ἐρῶ, ταῖς ὑμῶν θαῤῥῶν τῶν ἐπιταξάντων εὐχαῖς.

Οἶμαι τοίνυν τό παρ᾿ ἱστορίαν εἰρημένον τῷ θεοφόρῳ τούτῳ διδασκάλῳ, παρατιθεμένῳ τόν τοῦ Χριστοῦ πρόδρομον ἀντί τοῦ τῆς βροντῆς υἱοῦ, μή δύνασθαι ἄλλως ἤ κατά θεωρίαν ὁμαλίζεσθαι. Μόνη γάρ αὕτη τῶν κατά τήν ἱστορίαν ἀλλήλοις ἀντικεῖσθαι δοκούντων ἐστίν ὁμαλισμός, ὡς τήν ἐν ὅλοις ἀλήθειαν ἁπλῆν οὖσαν κατά τήν φύσιν ἀσωμάτως ἐμφαίνουσα, μή συμπαχυνομένην ταῖς φωναῖς ἤ τοῖς σώμασιν. Ὥσπερ οὖν ὁ μέγας Βαπτιστής Ἰωάννης ἐῤῥέθη πρόδρομος, ὡς πρός τόν ἀληθῶς προσδοκώμενον, καί φωνή πρός λόγον, ὡς τούτου μηνυτικῶς προηγουμένη, καί λύχνος πρός ἥλιον, ὡς τεχνικόν τε καί θετικόν καί πρόσκαιρον φῶς πρός φυσικόν τε καί οὐσιῶδες καί ἀτέχναστον καί αἰώνιον φῶς καί ἄσβεστον, οἶμαι δέ ὅτι καί ὡς μετάνοια, τήν πρό αὐτῆς κατά φύσιν ὑπάρχουσαν δικαιοσύνην μετ᾿ αὐτήν κατ᾿ οἰκονομίαν γενομένην κηρύττουσα, οὕτως οἶμαι κἀνταῦθα τόν θεόφρονα τοῦτον διδάσκαλον διά τοῦ παρ᾿ ἱστορίαν (14∆_332> εἰπεῖν πρόδρομον τόν μέγαν ἀπόστολον Ἰωάννην παραινίξασθαι, θέλειν, ὅτιπερ καί Ἰωάννης ὁ μέγας εὐαγγελιστής ἐν τῷ κατ᾿ αὐτόν Εὐαγγελίῳ πρόδρομός ἐστι τοῦ δι᾿ αὐτοῦ μηνυομένου μυστικωτέρου καί μείζονος Λόγου, καί γράμμασι τυπωθῆναι καί φωνῇ γλώσσης σαρκίνης ῥηθῆναι μή δυναμένου.

Στοιχείωσις γάρ ὡς πρός τήν ἐπιγινομένην ἑκάστοτε τοῖς δι᾿ αὐτῶν ὑψουμένοις, καί τό πάχος τοῦ σωματικοῦ φρονήματος πνευματικῶς ἑαυτῶν ἀποξέουσιν, ἤ καί ἐπιγενησομένην ἐς ὕστερον γνῶσιν, μετά τήν τῶν κινουμένων συντέλειαν, ἡ τῶν ἁγίων εὐαγγελίων ἐστί συγγραφή. Ὥσπερ γάρ ὁ νόμος