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though dark, become light, having approached the great light, who are also established as gods of those below, just as Moses once was, being united with those above, and, being with all, are in no way polluted by their association with others; and doing good to those who approach them, they sustain no loss of the good, but imparting mercy also to others, they receive more than they give, rather, by becoming like the Philanthropic One in a philanthropic way, being exalted as much as they are humbled, and ascending as much as they are humbled, in their humility lacking all necessities and yet wanting for nothing, being nourished by the eternal life of holy love.

Behold, therefore, I have revealed to you, my friends and brothers, the mysteries hidden in me — I see the end of my life drawing near at any moment — so that you may know also the ways of repentance, the ascents and progressions of the beginning and the middle, and the measures of perfection, and may strive to imitate, if not someone else, at least him who certainly begot you and loved you from his soul, who nourished you with milk by the word of God and fed you with the life-giving bread and showed you how to walk in the way of the saving commandments of God, to whom is due all glory, now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Discourse 18. (243)

Concerning the methods of the evil one, which he suggests to the more frivolous and to those who love to be first, whenever the shepherd departs from among men. And that it is necessary to prevent those who unworthily leap at the office from pushing forward for

this and cooperating. And near the end, to the shepherd. Brother, if you have been appointed leader of a people and a flock, consider well and

examine yourself with what thought and in what manner you came to such an office. If, then, you find that you have considered, even with a bare thought, that you ran for this office for the sake of honor from men, or for the sake of presidency, or for glory, or because you would not deign to be ruled by another brother because you thought no other was more pious or more learned than you, or in order to have bodily necessities more than all the others, and service and rest, or in order to benefit some of your own relatives and to acquire as friends those who walk according to the flesh, or in order to become renowned from the abbacy and (244) and known to the kings and rulers of the world, or even out of envy, because you did not want it, but you strove to get it yourself so that a certain brother would not get it, or even because of shame before men, so that all might not hear or some who were present see that another was preferred over you and condemn you as not being virtuous, know for certain that your appointment was not according to God. And that I may make this clearer to you, from the things which the evil one suggests to each of those who are settled in the common life, hear from this point the plots and suggestions of Satan.

The enemy begins to suggest, when the shepherd departs to the Lord and the brotherhood must elect another, and to say to each according to his own passion, according to his own will, according to his own condition. If, therefore, there are in that flock some of the more pious ones, he suggests these things to each of them and says: "If you became shepherd and abbot here, you would surely have been able to benefit and save them and to impart to them of your own virtues, since brother so-and-so or so-and-so does not do this in the matter." But if he is also known to those in the world, he suggests to him that: "You would also have been able to draw many to the monastic life and lead them out of

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σκοτεινοί φῶς, τῷ μεγάλῳ φωτί πλησιάσαντες, οἵ καί τῶν κάτω, καθά καί Μωσῆς ποτε, θεοί ἀποκαθίστανται, τοῖς ἄνω ἑνούμενοι, καί μετά πάντων ὄντες οὐδαμῶς ἐκ τῆς συνουσίας τῶν ἄλλων μολύνονται· καί εὐεργετοῦντες τούς πλησιάζοντας ζημίαν τοῦ καλοῦ οὐδεμίαν ὑφίστανται, ἀλλά μεταδίδοντες καί ἑτέροις τόν ἔλεον λαμβάνουσι πλέον ἤ διδοῦσι, μᾶλλον τῷ ὁμοιοῦσθαι φιλανθρώπως τῷ φιλανθρώπῳ, ὅσον ἀνέλθωσι ταπεινούμενοι καί ὅσον ταπεινωθῶσιν ὑψούμενοι, πάντων ἀποροῦντες τῇ ταπεινώσει τῶν ἀναγκαίων καί μηδενός λειπόμενοι, τρεφόμενοι τῇ αἰωνίῳ ζωῇ τῆς ἁγίας ἀγάπης.

Ἰδού οὖν ἀνεκάλυψα ὑμῖν τοῖς φίλοις καί ἀδελφοῖς μου τά ἐν ἐμοί κεκρυμμένα μυστήρια - τό τέλος τῆς ἐμῆς ζωῆς ἐγγίζον ὁρῶ ὅσον οὔπω , ἵνα εἰδῆτε καί μετανοίας τρόπους, ἀρχῆς τε καί μεσότητος ἀναβάσεις καί προκοπάς καί τελειότητος μέτρα, καί σπουδάσητε μιμήσασθαι, εἰ μή τινα ἄλλον, τόν γοῦν γεγεννηκότα πάντως ὑμᾶς καί ἐκ ψυχῆς ἀγαπήσαντα, γαλακτοτροφήσαντά τε τῷ λόγῳ τοῦ Θεοῦ καί τῷ ζωογονοῦντι θρέψαντα ἄρτῳ καί βαδίζειν ὑποδείξαντα ἐν τῇ ὁδῷ τῶν σωτηρίων ἐντολῶν τοῦ Θεοῦ, ᾧ πρέπει πᾶσα δόξα νῦν καί ἀεί καί εἰς τούς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν.

Λόγος ΙΗ΄. (243)

Περί μεθόδων τοῦ πονηροῦ, ὧν ὑποβάλλει τοῖς κουφοτέροις καί φιλοπρωτεύουσιν, ὁπόταν ὁ ποιμήν ἐξ ἀνθρώπων γένηται. Καί ὅτι χρή τούς μέν ἀναξίως ἐπιπηδῶντας τῇ ἀρχῇ πάσῃ κωλύειν συνωθεῖν ἐπί

τοῦτο καί συνεργεῖν. Καί πρός τῷ τέλει, πρός τόν ποιμένα. Ἀδελφέ, εἰ λαοῦ καί ποίμνης ἡγούμενος κατεστάθης, σκόπησον καλῶς καί

ἀνάκρινον σεαυτόν ποίῳ λογισμῷ καί ἐκ ποίου τρόπου εἰς τήν τοιαύτην κατέστης ἀρχήν. Εἰ μέν οὖν εὑρήσεις σεαυτόν κἄν ψιλῷ λογισμῷ ἐνθυμηθέντα, ὅτι διά τήν τῶν ἀνθρώπων τιμήν ταύτῃ ἐπέδραμες ἤ διά προεδρίαν ἤ διά δόξαν, εἴτε ὡς μή καταδεξαμένου σου παρ᾿ ἑτέρου ἄρχεσθαι ἀδελφοῦ διά τό οἴεσθαι μή εἶναί σου εὐλαβέστερον ἤ λογιώτερον ἕτερον, ἤ διά τό ἔχειν τάς σωματικάς χρείας περισσότερον τῶν ἄλλων ἁπάντων καί τήν δουλείαν καί τήν ἀνάπαυσιν, ἤ διά τό τινάς τῶν ἰδίων καί συγγενῶν εὐεργετῆσαι καί φίλους κτήσασθαι τούς κατά σάρκα περιπατοῦντας, ἤ διά τό ὀνομαστόν σε ἐκ τῆς ἡγουμενίας γενέσθαι καί (244) καί τῆς τοῦ κόσμου βασιλεῦσι καί ἄρχουσι γνώριμον, εἴτε καί κατά φθόνον ὡς ὅτι οὐκ ἤθελες, ἀλλ᾿ ἵνα μή γένηται ὁ δεῖνα ὁ ἀδελφός ἐσπούδασας τοῦ γενέσθαι σύ, ἤ καί διά τήν τῶν ἀνθρώπων αἰσχύνην, ἵνα μή ἀκούσωσι πάντες ἤ καί παραγενόμενοί τινες ἴδωσιν ὅτι ἄλλος ὑπέρ σέ προεκρίθη καί καταγνώσωσί σου ὡς μή ἐναρέτου, γινώσκων γίνωσκε ὅτι οὐ κατά Θεόν ἐγένετό σου ἡ πρόβλησις. Καί ἵνα σοι, ἐξ ὧν ὑποτίθεται ὁ πονηρός ἑκάστῳ τῶν ἐν κοινοβίῳ καθεζομένων, σαφέστερον τοῦτο ποιήσωμαι, ἐντεῦθεν ἄκουε τάς ἐπιβουλάς καί ὑπονοίας τοῦ Σατανᾶ.

Ὑποβάλλειν ἄρχεται ὁ ἐχθρός, ὅταν ὁ ποιμήν πρός Κύριον ἐκδημήσῃ, ἕτερον δέ ὀφείλει ἐκλέξασθαι ἡ ἀδελφότης, καί λέγειν ἑκάστῳ κατά τό ἴδιον πάθος, κατά τό ἴδιον θέλημα, κατά τήν ἰδίαν κατάστασιν. Ἐάν οὖν ὦσιν ἐν τῇ ποίμνῃ ἐκείνῃ τῶν εὐλαβεστέρων τινές, ταῦτα ἑκάστῳ αὐτῶν ὑποτίθεται καί φησίν· "Εἰ ἐγένου σύ ἐνταῦθα ποιμήν καί ἡγούμενος, εἶχες ἄν πάντως ὠφελῆσαι καί σῶσαι καί τῶν σῶν αὐτοῖς ἀρετῶν μεταδοῦναι, ἐπεί ὁ δεῖνα ἤ ὁ δεῖνα ἀδελφός ἐν τῷ πράγματι τοῦτο οὐ ποιεῖ". Εἰ δέ καί γνώριμος τοῖς κατά κόσμον ἐστίν, ὑποβάλλει αὐτῷ ὅτι· "Καί πολλούς ἄν ἑλκύσαι εἶχες πρός τήν μοναχικήν πολιτείαν καί ἐξαγαγεῖν αὐτούς ἐκ