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in Zion and kinsmen in Jerusalem.” For what, even if one is a fornicator, or a drunkard and idolater, is he blessed, if only he has seed in Zion and kinsmen in Jerusalem? No one in his right mind will say this. Virginity is the way of life of the angels, the property of every incorporeal nature. We say these things not to disparage marriage—may it not be—(for we know the Lord blessed marriage in His presence and the one who said: “Marriage is honorable and the bed undefiled”), but knowing that virginity is better than what is good. For in virtues there are degrees of intensity and remission, likewise also in vices. We know that all mortals after the founders of the race are the offspring of marriage. For they are the creation of virginity and not of marriage. Therefore, by as much as an angel is superior to a man, by so much is virginity more honorable than marriage. But why do I say angel? Christ Himself is the glory of virginity, not only because He was begotten of the Father without beginning and without consort, but also because, having become man as we are, beyond our nature He was incarnate of a virgin without intercourse, and Himself demonstrated true and complete virginity in Himself. Whence He did not legislate this for us (“for not all can accept this saying,” as He Himself said), but by deed He instructed us and empowered us for it. For to whom is it not clear that virginity is now practiced among men? Good is childbearing, which marriage established, and good is marriage on account of fornication, cutting this off and, through lawful union, not allowing the madness of desire to rage into unlawful acts. Marriage is good for those who lack continence; but virginity is better, increasing the childbearing of the soul and offering to God ripe fruit, prayer. “Marriage is honorable and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers God will judge.” 98 Concerning Circumcision Circumcision was given to Abraham before the law, after the blessings, after the promise, as a sign distinguishing him and his household from the nations with whom he associated. And this is clear: For when Israel spent forty years in the desert alone by itself, not intermingling with another nation, all those who were born in the desert were not circumcised; but when Joshua led them across the Jordan, they were circumcised, and a second law of circumcision came to be. For in Abraham's time a law of circumcision was given, then it ceased in the desert for forty years. And again a second time God gave Joshua the law of circumcision after crossing the Jordan, as it is written in the book of Joshua the son of Nun: “And about this time the Lord said to Joshua: Make for yourself stone knives from sharp rock and sitting down circumcise the sons of Israel a second time,” and a little after: “For Israel wandered for forty-two years in the desert of Battaris, and for this reason most of their fighting men who had come out of the land of Egypt, who had disobeyed the commandments of God, were uncircumcised; to whom He also ordained that they should not see the good land, which the Lord swore to our fathers to give them, a land flowing with milk and honey. But in their place He raised up their sons, whom Joshua circumcised, because they had been uncircumcised on the way.” So circumcision was a sign separating Israel from the nations with whom they associated. And it was a type of baptism. For just as circumcision does not cut off a useful member of the body, but a useless superfluity, so through holy baptism we are circumcised of sin; and sin is clearly a superfluity of desire and not a necessary desire (for it is impossible for one not to desire at all or to be completely without a taste of pleasure), but the useless part of pleasure, that is, the useless desire and pleasure, which is sin, which holy baptism circumcises, giving us as a sign the precious cross on the forehead, not separating us from the nations (for all nations have received baptism and have been sealed with the sign of the cross), but in each nation distinguishing the faithful from the unfaithful. Of the truth therefore

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Σιὼν καὶ οἰκείους ἐν Ἱερουσαλήμ». Τί γάρ, κἂν πόρνος ᾖ, κἂν μέθυσος καὶ εἰδωλολάτρης, μακάριός ἐστιν, εἰ μόνον ἔχει σπέρμα ἐν Σιὼν καὶ οἰκείους ἐν Ἱερουσαλήμ; Οὐδεὶς εὖ φρονῶν τοῦτο ἐρεῖ. Παρθενία τὸ τῶν ἀγγέλων πολίτευμα, τὸ πάσης ἀσωμάτου φύσεως ἰδίωμα. Ταῦτα λέγομεν οὐ τὸν γάμον κακίζοντες-μὴ γένοιτο-(οἴδαμεν γὰρ τὸν κύριον ἐν τῇ παρουσίᾳ αὐτοῦ τὸν γάμον εὐλογήσαντα καὶ τὸν εἰπόντα· «Τίμιος ὁ γάμος καὶ ἡ κοίτη ἀμίαντος»), ἀλλὰ καλοῦ κρείττονα τὴν παρθενίαν γινώσκοντες. Ἔν τε γὰρ ταῖς ἀρεταῖς εἰσιν ἐπιτάσεις καὶ ὑφέσεις, ὁμοίως καὶ ἐν ταῖς κακίαις. Γινώσκομεν, ὅτι γάμου ἔκγονοι πάντες βροτοὶ μετὰ τοὺς τοῦ γένους ἀρχηγέτας. Ἐκεῖνοι γὰρ παρθενίας εἰσὶ καὶ οὐ γάμου πλαστούργημα. Ὅσῳ τοιγαροῦν ἄγγελος ἀνθρώπου ὑπέρτερος, τοσούτῳ παρθενία γάμου τιμιωτέρα. Τί δὲ λέγω ἄγγελος; Αὐτὸς ὁ Χριστὸς τῆς παρθενίας τὸ κλέος, οὐ μόνον ἐκ πατρὸς ἀνάρχως καὶ ἀσυνδυάστως γεγεννημένος, ἀλλ' ὅτι καὶ ἄνθρωπος καθ' ἡμᾶς γενόμενος ὑπὲρ ἡμᾶς ἐκ παρθένου συναφείας ἄνευ σεσαρκωμένος καὶ αὐτὸς παρθενίαν τὴν ἀληθῆ καὶ παντελῆ δεικνὺς ἐν ἑαυτῷ. Ὅθεν καὶ ταύτην ἡμῖν οὐκ ἐνομοθέτησε μέν («οὐ γὰρ πάντες χωροῦσι τὸν λόγον», ὡς αὐτὸς ἔφησεν), ἔργῳ δὲ ἡμᾶς ἐξεπαίδευσεν καὶ πρὸς ταύτην ἡμᾶς ἐνεδυνάμωσε. Τίνι γὰρ οὐκ ἔστι σαφές, ὅτι παρθενία ἐν ἀνθρώποις νῦν πολιτεύεται; Καλὴ μὲν ἡ τεκνογονία, ἣν ὁ γάμος συνέστησε, καὶ καλὸς ὁ γάμος διὰ τὰς πορνείας, ταύτας περικόπτων καὶ τὸ λυσσῶδες τῆς ἐπιθυμίας διὰ τῆς ἐννόμου μίξεως οὐκ ἐῶν πρὸς ἀνόμους ἐκμαίνεσθαι πράξεις. Καλὸς ὁ γάμος, οἷς οὐ πάρεστιν ἐγκράτεια· κρείττων δὲ ἡ παρθενία ψυχῆς τεκνογονίαν αὔξουσα καὶ θεῷ καρπὸν ὥριμον, τὴν προσευχήν, προσάγουσα. «Τίμιος ὁ γάμος καὶ ἡ κοίτη ἀμίαντος· πόρνους δὲ καὶ μοιχοὺς κρινεῖ ὁ θεός». 98 Περὶ τῆς περιτομῆσ Ἡ περιτομὴ πρὸ νόμου ἐδόθη τῷ Ἀβραὰμ μετὰ τὰς εὐλογίας, μετὰ τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν, σημεῖον ἀποδιαστέλλον αὐτὸν καὶ τοὺς αὐτοῦ οἰκογενεῖς ἐκ τῶν ἐθνῶν, μεθ' ὧν συνανεστρέφετο. Καὶ δῆλον· Ὅτε γὰρ ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ τεσσαράκοντα ἔτη ὁ Ἰσραὴλ μόνος καθ' ἑαυτὸν διέτριψεν οὐ συναναμεμιγμένος ἑτέρῳ ἔθνει, ὅσοι ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ ἐγεννήθησαν, οὐ περιετμήθησαν· ἡνίκα δὲ Ἰησοῦς διεβίβαζεν αὐτοὺς τὸν Ἰορδάνην, περιετμήθησαν, καὶ γέγονε δεύτερος νόμος περιτομῆς. Ἐπὶ Ἀβραὰμ γὰρ ἐδόθη νόμος περιτομῆς, εἶτα ἐπαύσατο ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ τεσσαράκοντα ἔτη. Καὶ πάλιν ἐκ δευτέρου ἔδωκεν ὁ θεὸς τῷ Ἰησοῦ νόμον περιτομῆς μετὰ τὸ διαβῆναι τὸν Ἰορδάνην, καθὼς ἐν τῇ βίβλῳ Ἰησοῦ τοῦ Ναυῆ γέγραπται· «Ὑπὸ δὲ τοῦτον τὸν καιρὸν εἶπεν κύριος τῷ Ἰησοῦ· Ποίησον σεαυτῷ μαχαίρας πετρίνας ἐκ πέτρας ἀκροτόμου καὶ καθίσας περίτεμε τοὺς υἱοὺς Ἰσραὴλ ἐκ δευτέρου», καὶ μετ' ὀλίγα· «Ἐπὶ τεσσαράκοντα γὰρ καὶ δύο ἔτη ἀνέστραπται Ἰσραὴλ ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ τῇ Βατταρίτιδι, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἀπερίτμητοι αὐτῶν ἦσαν οἱ πλεῖστοι τῶν μαχίμων τῶν ἐξεληλυθότων ἐκ γῆς Αἰγύπτου, οἱ ἀπειθήσαντες ταῖς ἐντολαῖς τοῦ θεοῦ, οἷς καὶ διώρισε μὴ ἰδεῖν αὐτοὺς τὴν γῆν τὴν ἀγαθήν, ἣν ὤμοσε κύριος τοῖς πατράσιν ἡμῶν δοῦναι αὐτοῖς, γῆν ῥέουσαν γάλα καὶ μέλι. Ἀντὶ δὲ τούτων ἀντεκατέστησε τοὺς υἱοὺς αὐτῶν, οὓς Ἰησοῦς περιέτεμε, διὰ τὸ γεγενῆσθαι αὐτοὺς ἀπεριτμήτους κατὰ τὴν ὁδόν». Ὥστε σημεῖον ἦν ἡ περιτομὴ ἀφορίζον τὸν Ἰσραὴλ ἐκ τῶν ἐθνῶν, οἷς συνανεστρέφετο. Τύπος δὲ ἦν τοῦ βαπτίσματος. Καθάπερ γὰρ ἡ περιτομὴ οὐ χρειῶδες μέλος ἀποτέμνει τοῦ σώματος, ἀλλὰ περίττωμα ἄχρηστον, οὕτω διὰ τοῦ ἁγίου βαπτίσματος τὴν ἁμαρτίαν περιτεμνόμεθα· ἡ δὲ ἁμαρτία δῆλον ὡς περίττωμα ἐπιθυμίας ἐστὶ καὶ οὐ χρειώδης ἐπιθυμία (ἀδύνατον γάρ τινα μηδ' ὅλως ἐπιθυμεῖν ἢ τέλεον ἄγευστον ἡδονῆς εἶναι), ἀλλὰ τὸ ἄχρηστον τῆς ἡδονῆς ἤτοι ἡ ἄχρηστος ἐπιθυμία τε καὶ ἡδονή, τουτέστιν ἡ ἁμαρτία, ἣν περιτέμνει τὸ ἅγιον βάπτισμα παρέχον ἡμῖν σημεῖον τὸν τίμιον σταυρὸν ἐπὶ τοῦ μετώπου, οὐκ ἐξ ἐθνῶν ἀφορίζον ἡμᾶς (πάντα γὰρ τὰ ἔθνη τοῦ βαπτίσματος ἔτυχον καὶ τῷ σημείῳ τοῦ σταυροῦ ἐσφραγίσθησαν), ἀλλ' ἐν ἑκάστῳ ἔθνει τὸν πιστὸν ἀποδιαστέλλον τοῦ ἀπίστου. Τῆς τοίνυν ἀληθείας