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0637 the orderly bonds of salvation. And so that I do not prolong the discourse by going through the theory of each of the things mentioned, the peaceful . . . . . the temple of God being able from above . . . . .these are they, and if anyone . . . . ., but able to persuade them not to be escorted by fear and receiving harm while cooperating in the building of the most divine temple; both Hiram king of Tyre and the one hundred and fifty thousand of the foreigners who were stonecutters and water-carriers. But stretch forth, and prosper, and reign, even if you reigned without your Maximus, for the sake of truth and meekness and righteousness, which these are. But I will add, and be very vigilant not to be led away with the daughters of the Gentile kings; lest they share the kingdom with a foolish son and an apostate servant. For very willingly . . . . . Farewell, honored Father, and pray for your servant . . . . shepherd, and terribly held by many sins.

LETTER 43. ... TO JOHN THE CUBICULARIUS. 43. The same to John the cubicularius. (15B_430> The honorable letter of my God-guarded master has come, with

peace and he himself appearing entirely in his manners. For in the solemnity of the words the disposition of the soul is naturally revealed along with the gentleness of the manners; and I was delighted as if receiving my master himself, and I embraced him in the spirit, and having enclosed him whole in the capacity of my heart I put him away; and I glorified Christ our God, who implanted in men the light of the law of love; according to which they can never be absent from each other, even if they are very far apart from each other physically in spatial distance, who know how to properly care for the seeds of love.

But since the letter, having brought good news of worldly peace, has transformed grief into joy for the soul, it is necessary that we too should in every way be rightly grateful for it to God who has granted it; so that we may not appear ungrateful for the good deed, having repaid the benefactor badly. And we shall in every way be grateful, clearly by using the peace for what is needed, and by rejecting the friendship with the world and the ruler of the world which badly exists in us; having at long last put an end to the war waged against God through the passions, and having made a truce with them of peace towards him in the abolition of the body, let us cease from enmity towards him. For it is impossible for us to be loved by him, while rebelling against him through the passions, (15B_432> and being held liable to pay tribute through wickedness to the wicked tyrant and murderer of souls, the devil, without first having been completely at war with the evil one. For until then we are established as enemies and foes of God, even if we fashion for ourselves the name of believers, 0640 as long as we wish to be slaves to passions of dishonor, and we willingly accept to pay terrible tributes to the devil through the works of shame. And no benefit will come to us henceforth from worldly peace, while the soul is badly disposed, and rebels against its own maker, and not enduring to be under his kingdom, being still sold to countless masters who always hasten it to wickedness; and they deceitfully prepare it to choose the road leading to destruction rather than the one that saves. But when we become sober from the drunkenness of the passions, and rise up against the wickedness and tyrannical rule of the devil; and we shake off from ourselves his most bitter yoke, and when we have perceived how much his friendship has corrupted us then we shall receive the peaceful presence of the peaceful and meek king Christ, occurring invisibly within ourselves, and we shall submit under the

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0637 τούς εὐτάκτους τῆς σωτηρίας δεσμούς. Καί ἵνα μή τήν καθ᾿ ἕκαστον τῶν εἰρημένων διεξερχόμενος θεωρίαν μηκύνω τόν λόγον, τό εἰρηνικόν . . . . . τόν ναόν τοῦ Θεοῦ δυνάμενον ἄνω . . . . .αὐταί εἰσιν, καί εἴ τις . . . . ., ἀλλά μή φόβῳ δορυφορεῖν πεῖσαι δυναμένην καί εἰς τήν οἰκοδομήν τοῦ θειοτάτου ναοῦ συνεργοῦσαν βλάβος λαμβάνουσαν· τόν τε Χηράν βασιλέα Τύρου καί τάς ἑκατόν πεντήκοντα χιλιάδας τῶν ἀλλοφύλων τῶν λατόμων καί ὑδροφόρων. Ἀλλ᾿ Ἔντεινον, καί κατευόδου, καί βασίλευε, κἄν χωρίς Μαξίμου τοῦ σοῦ ἐβασίλευσας, ἕνεκεν ἀληθείας καί πραότητος καί δικαιοσύνης, αἵτινες αὗταί εἰσι. Προσθήσω δέ, καί ἀγρύπνει κατά κράτος μή συναπαχθῆναι καθ' ὅ τι σύν ταῖς τῶν ἐθνικῶν βασιλέων θυγατράσι· μήπως συνδιέλωσι τήν βασιλείαν εἰς υἱόν ἄφρονα καί δοῦλον ἀποστάτην. Πολύ γάρ ἑκών . . . . . Ἔῤῥωσο, Πάτερ τίμιε, καί εὔχου τῷ σῷ δούλῳ . . . . πουμένῳ, καί δεινῶς ἐνεχομένῳ ὑπό πολλῶν ἁμαρτιῶν.

ΕΠΙΣΤΟΛΗ ΜΓ'. ... ΠΡΟΣ ΙΩΑΝΝΗΝ ΚΟΥΒΙΚΟΥΛΑΡΙΟΝ. ΜΓ´Τοῦ αὐτοῦ πρός Ἰωάννην κουβικουλάριον. (15Β_430> Ἧκεν τό τίμιον τοῦ θεοφυλάκτου μου δεσπότου γράμμα, μετά

τῆς εἰρήνης καί αὐτόν ὅλον φέρον τοῖς τρόποις φαινόμενον. Τῇ γάρ τῶν λόγων σεμνότητι πέφυκέ πως ἐμφαίνεσθαι μετά τῆς τῶν τρόπων ἐπιεικείας καί τῆς ψυχῆς ἡ διάθεσις· καί ἤσθην ὥσπερ αὐτόν δεξάμενος τόν ἐμόν δεσπότην, καί ἠσπασάμην τῷ πνεύματι, καί ὅλον τῷ χωρήματι τῆς καρδίας περιλαβών ἀπεθέμην· καί ἐδόξασα Χριστόν τόν Θεόν ἡμῶν, φῶς τοῖς ἀνθρωποις ἐμφύντα τῆς ἀγάπης τόν νόμον· καθ᾿ ἥν ἀλλήλων ἀπεῖναι οὐδέποτε δύνανται, κἄν πολλῷ διεστήκασιν ἀλλήλων σωματικῶς τῷ τοπικῷ διαστήματι, οἱ τῶν σπερμάτων τῆς ἀγάπης δεόντως ἐπιμελεῖσθαι γινώσκοντες.

Ἀλλ᾿ ἐπειδή εἰρήνης κοσμικῆς εὐαγγέλια τό γράμμα κομίσαν, εἰς χαράν τῆς ψυχῆς τήν λύπην μεθήρμοσε, δέον ἐστί καί ἡμᾶς ὑπέρ αὐτῆς εἰκότως τῷ χαρισαμένῳ Θεῷ γενέσθαι πάντως εὐγνώμονας· ἵνα μή φανῶμεν ἀχάριστοι περί τήν εὐποιίαν, κακῶς τόν εὐεργέτην ἀνταμειψάμενοι. Γενησόμεθα δέ πάντως εὐγνώμονες, εἰς δέον δῆλον ὅτι τῇ εἰρήνῃ χρησάμενοι, καί τήν πρός τόν κόσμον καί κοσμοκράτορα κακῶς ἡμῖν ἐνυπάρχουσαν ἀθετήσαντες φιλίαν· τόν διά τῶν παθῶν πρός τόν Θεόν συνεστάμενον καί ὀψέ ποτε καταλύσαντες πόλεμον, καί σπονδάς αὐτοῖς τῆς πρός αὐτόν εἰρήνης ποιήσαντες ἐν τῇ καταργήσει τοῦ σώματος, τῆς πρός αὐτόν ἔχθρας παυσώμεθα. Ἀδύνατον γάρ ἐστιν ἡμᾶς αὐτῷ φιλωθῆναι, διά τῶν παθῶν πρός αὐτόν στασιάζοντας, (15Β_432> καί τῷ πονηρῷ τυράννῳ καί φονευτῇ τῶν ψυχῶν διαβόλῳ διά κακίας δασμοφορεῖν ἐνεχομένους, μή πρότερον δι᾿ ὅλου πολεμωθέντας τῷ πονηρῷ. Μέχρι γάρ τότε τοῦ Θεοῦ καθεστήκαμεν ἐχθροί καί πολέμιοι, κἄν πιστῶν προσηγορίαν ἡμῖν αὐτοῖς 0640 περιπλάττωμεν, μέχρις οὗ πάθεσιν ἀτιμίας δουλεύειν βουλόμεθα, καί φόρους εἰσφέρειν δεινούς ἑκουσίως διά τῶν ἔργων τῆς αἰσχύνης τῷ διαβόλῳ καταδεχόμεθα. Καί οὐδέν ὄφελος ἡμῖν ἐκ τῆς κατά κόσμον εἰρήνης λοιπόν γενήσεται, τῆς ψυχῆς κακῶς διακειμένης, καί πρός τόν ἴδιον ποιητήν στασιαζούσης, καί ὑπό τήν βασιλείαν αὐτοῦ γενέσθαι οὐκ ἀνεχομένης, ἔτι μυρίοις πεπραμένης δεσπόταις εἰς κακίαν αὐτήν ἀεί κατεπείγουσι· καί τήν εἰς ἀπώλειαν φέρουσαν ὁδόν, τῆς σωζούσης μᾶλλον ἀπατηλῶς αἱρεῖσθαι παρασκευάζουσιν. Ἐπειδάν δέ τῆς τῶν παθῶν μέθης ἐκνήψωμεν, καί τῆς τοῦ διαβόλου πονηρίας κατεξαναστῶμεν καί τυραννικῆς βασιλείας· καί τόν αὐτοῦ πικρότατον ζυγόν ἑαυτῶν ἐκτιναξώμεθα, καί ὅσον κατείδομεν ἡμᾶς τῇ πρός αὐτόν φιλίᾳ κατέφθειρε τηνικαῦτα δεξόμεθα τοῦ εἰρηνικοῦ καί πράου βασιλέως Χριστοῦ τήν εἰρηνικήν παρουσίαν, ἐν ἑαυτοῖς ἀοράτως γινομένην, καί ἀνεξόμεθα ὑπό τόν