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to do this and that for us", when you have obviously never entered the palace, but happen to be unknown even to the king himself, as a stranger to all those in the palace, would you ever have dared to do this or to accept the office? You will certainly confess that you would never have dared to do so, but rather you would have blamed and mocked those who said these things to you as mad and senseless men, and you would have rejected the office not as a source of honor but as a cause of dishonor and punishment. If, then, we are unable to do such things in human affairs, does it not seem dreadful to you to take up the apostolic office rashly, brother? And has it been considered a small thing by you to approach the unapproachable light and to become a mediator between God and men? And is the undertaking of this matter contemptible? Woe is me, brother, I fear that we have been brought down into complete darkness and for this reason we are ignorant of what sort of matters we are daring to undertake. For if we knew, we would never have driven to such audacity and boldness, as to make a mockery of divine matters and to keep greater honor and fear (253) for the earthly king than for the immortal king Christ. Therefore let us not cease examining ourselves, and overturning in every way and cutting off from the attempt those who try to ascend unworthily to such an office; but let us strive as much as is possible to hinder them from their irrational impulse, so that we may both deliver them from judgment and we ourselves may live more safely.

But if, as has been said, you see no brother in the monastery who has a life of witness and who is spiritual in deed and word, but every random person simply leaping at and unworthily taking the pastoral office, and striving for the harm of the brethren and for the destruction of his own soul, and examining yourself accurately you find yourself freed from all ambition, having no trace of any pleasure and bodily desire, completely pure of avarice and remembrance of wrongs, having perfect meekness and freedom from anger, and having such love for God that from the mere hearing of the name of Christ you are immediately kindled with longing and shed tears, and in addition to these things, mourning for your neighbor and considering the faults of others as your own and holding yourself from the soul to be more sinful than all; and finally, if you see the grace of the Holy Spirit rich within you, illuminating and making what is within your heart like the sun, and you clearly perceive the miracle of the bush being performed in you, so that you are burned in being united with the unapproachable fire, but are not consumed because your soul is free from every passion; furthermore, if you are so humbled as to consider yourself incapable and unworthy, (254) knowing the weakness of human nature? but you trust in the grace from above and in the sufficiency from it and you readily undertake the matter, being compelled by its zeal and pushing aside every human reasoning, and setting forth your very soul for the sake of the brethren because of God's commandment alone and the love of your neighbor; and in addition to what has been said, if you have your mind stripped of every worldly thought, and you are clothed in the luminous tunic of humility, so that you neither attach your heart even slightly to those who cooperate nor are displeased with those who oppose, but are completely equal toward all in the simplicity and goodness and guilelessness of your heart; not even then should you dare to take up the office without the counsel of your spiritual father, but be humbled and do this with his prayer and command, and take up the office for the salvation of the brethren alone.

But if you know that your spiritual father is a partaker of the same Spirit, having been deemed worthy of the same knowledge and gift, so that he may not speak to you things contrary to the divine will, but things that seem good according to the same grace and measure

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αὐτόν ποιῆσαι ἡμῖν τά καί τά", σοῦ δηλονότι εἰς παλάτιον μή εἰσελθόντος ποτέ, ἀλλά ἀγνωρίστου τυγχάνοντος καί αὐτῷ τῷ βασιλεῖ, ὡς ξένου πᾶσι τοῖς ἐν τῷ παλατίῳ, ἆρα ἐτόλμησας ἄν ποτε τοῦτο ποιῆσαι ἤ ἀποδέξασθαι τό ἀξίωμα; Πάντως ὁμολογήσεις ὡς οὐκ ποτε διαπράξασθαι τετόλμηκας, ἀλλά καί τούς ταῦτά σοι λέγοντας ὡς μαινομένους καί ἔκφρονας μᾶλλον ἐμέμψω καί κατεγέλασας, καί τό ἀξίωμα οὐχ ὡς τιμῆς ἀλλ᾿ ὡς ἀτιμίας καί κολάσεως πρόξενον ἀπερρίψω. Εἰ τοίνυν ἀδυνάτως ἔχομεν ἐπί ἀνθρωπίνων πραγμάτων τοιαῦτα ποιεῖν, οὐ φρικτόν σοί ἐστι καί δοκεῖ τό ἀναλαβέσθαι ἀποστολικόν ἀξίωμα προπετῶς, ἀδελφέ; Καί πλησιάσαι τῷ ἀπροσίτῳ φωτί καί μεσίτης Θεοῦ καί ἀνθρώπων γενέσθαι μικρόν σοι λελόγισται; Καί ὡς εὐκαταφρόνητος ἡ ἐπιχείρησις τούτου τοῦ πράγματος; Οὐαί μοι, ἀδελφέ, φοβοῦμαι ὅτι εἰς παντελῆ κατηνέχθημεν σκότωσιν καί διά τοῦτο ἀγνοοῦμεν ὁποίων κατατολμῶμεν πραγμάτων. Εἰ γάρ ἐγινώσκομεν, οὐκ ἄν εἰς τοσοῦτόν ποτε αὐθαδείας καί τόλμης ἠλάσαμεν, ὥστε τῶν θείων κατορχεῖσθαι πραγμάτων καί πλείονα τήν τιμήν καί τόν φόβον φυλάττειν (253) τῷ ἐπί γῆς βασιλεῖ ὑπέρ τόν ἀθάνατον βασιλέα Χριστόν. Τοιγαροῦν μή παυσώμεθα ἑαυτούς ἀνακρίνοντες, καί τούς εἰς τοιαύτην ἀναξίως ἐπιβαίνειν ἐπιχειροῦντας ἀρχήν παντί τρόπῳ ἀνατρέπειν καί ἐκκόπτειν τῆς ἐγχειρήσεως· ἀλλά σπουδάσωμεν ὅσον τό ἐφικτόν κωλύειν αὐτούς τῆς παραλόγου ὁρμῆς, ἵνα καί αὐτούς τοῦ κρίματος ἀπαλλάξωμεν καί ἡμεῖς βιώσωμεν ἀσφαλέστερον.

Ἐάν δέ, καθώς εἴρηται, οὐδένα ὁρᾷς ἐν τῷ μοναστηρίῳ ἀδελφόν ἐμμάρτυρον βίον ἔχοντα καί πνευματικόν ἔργῳ καί λόγῳ τυγχάνοντα, πάντα δέ τόν τυχόντα ἁπλῶς ἐπιπηδῶντα καί ἀναξίως τῇ ποιμενικῇ ἀρχῇ, καί πρός βλάβην μέν σπουδάζοντα τῶν ἀδελφῶν, πρός ἀπώλειαν δέ τῆς ἰδίας ψυχῆς, ἐρευνῶν δέ ἀκριβῶς εὑρίσκεις σεαυτόν πάσης μέν ἀπηλλαγμένον φιλοδοξίας, πάσης δέ ἡδονῆς καί ἐπιθυμίας σωματικῆς ἴχνος οὐκ ἔχοντα, φυλαργυρίας δέ καί μνησικακίας τό παντελές καθαρεύοντα, πρᾳότητα τελείαν καί ἀοργησίαν ἔχοντα, ἀγάπην δέ τοιαύτην εἰς τόν Θεόν ἔχοντα ὡς ἐκ μόνης τῆς ἀκοῆς τοῦ ὀνόματος τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἀνάπτεσθαι τῷ πόθῳ εὐθύς καί καταφέρειν τά δάκρυα, καί πρός τούτοις ὑπέρ τόν πλησίον πενθοῦντα καί ἡγούμενον ἴδια τά ἀλλότρια σφάλματα καί ἑαυτόν πάντων ἀπό ψυχῆς ἁμαρτωλότερον ἔχοντα· καί τέλος, ἐάν πλουσίαν ἐν σοί ὁρᾷς τήν χάριν τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος, φωτίζουσαν καί ὡς ἥλιον ἀποτελοῦσαν τά ἐντός τῆς καρδίας σου, καί τό τῆς βάτου θαῦμα ἐναργῶς κατανοεῖς ἐν σοί ἐκτελούμενον, ὡς καίεσθαι μέν ἐν τῷ ἑνοῦσθαι τῷ ἀπροσίτῳ πυρί, μή κατακαίεσθαι δέ διά τό ἀπηλλαγμένην εἶναι παντός πάθους τήν σήν ψυχήν· ἔτι δέ εἰ οὕτω ταπεινοῦσαι, ὡς νομίζειν ἑαυτόν ἀνίκανον καί ἀνάξιον, (254) τῆς ἀνθρωπίνης φύσεως ἐπιστάμενος τήν ἀσθένειαν; θαρρεῖς δέ τῇ ἄνωθεν χάριτι καί τῇ ἐξ αὐτῆς ἱκανότητι καί προθύμως ἐπιχειρεῖς τῷ πράγματι, τῇ ζέσει ταύτης ἀναγκαζόμενος πάντε τε λογισμόν ἀνθρώπινον ἀπωθούμενος, καί τήν ψυχήν αὐτήν διά μόνην τήν τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐντολήν καί τήν ἀγάπην τοῦ πλησίου ὑπέρ τῶν ἀδελφῶν προτιθέμενος· καί πρός τοῖς εἰρημένοις, ἐάν γυμνόν ἔχῃς τόν νοῦν πάσης κοσμικῆς ἐνθυμήσεως, ἐνδεδυμένος δέ ᾗς τόν φωτοειδῆ χιτῶνα τῆς ταπεινώσεως, ὥστε μήτε τοῖς σνεργοῦσι κἄν ψιλῶς τήν καρδίαν προστίθεσθαι μήτε τοῖς ἀντιπράττουσιν ἀηδίζεσθαι, ἀλλ᾿ ὅλως ἴσος εἶναι πρός πάντας τῇ ἁπλότητι καί ἀγαθότητι καί τῇ ἀκακίᾳ τῆς καρδίας σου· μηδέ τότε ἄνευ βουλῆς τοῦ σοῦ πνευματικοῦ πατρός τῆς ἀρχῆς ἐπιβῆναι τολμήσῃς, ἀλλά ταπεινώθητι καί μετά εὐχῆς αὐτοῦ καί προστάξεως τοῦτο ποίησον, καί ἐπίβηθι τῆς ἀρχῆς διά μόνην τήν σωτηρίαν τῶν ἀδελφῶν.

Ἀλλ᾿ ἐάν οἶδας τόν σόν πνευματικόν πατέρα μέτοχον εἶναι τοῦ αὐτοῦ Πνεύματος, τῆς αὐτῆς ἠξιωμένον γνώσεώς τε καί δωρεᾶς, ἵνα μή τά ἐναντία τοῦ θείου θελήματος ἀλλά κατά τό αὐτό χάρισμα καί μέτρον λαλήσῃ σοι τά δοκοῦντα