112

thus saying: "Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the (260) devil and his angels. For I was hungry" and having enumerated the rest, "I was sick," He said, "and you did not minister to me." How then, or with what face, shall we behold Him, who comes to examine each one's work?

Be not deceived; God is fire and fire He came and cast upon the earth; which also goes about seeking to seize matter, that is, a good intention and disposition, and to fall upon it and be kindled. And in whom it is kindled, it rises into a great flame and reaches up to the heavens and does not allow the one set on fire to be idle at all or to rest. Nor does it burn the soul that has been set alight unknowingly, as some of the dead think - for it is not senseless matter, but at first in sensation and knowledge and unbearable pain; for it is both sensitive and rational; but after these things, when we are completely pure of the filth of the passions, it becomes food and drink, illumination and joy unceasingly within us, and makes us light by participation. For just as a burning furnace at first is rather blackened by the smoke sent out from the matter, but when it burns fiercely, it becomes entirely translucent and like the fire and from then on receives no blackness from the smoke by participation, so also the soul that has begun to burn with divine desire first sees the darkness of the passions in the fire of the Spirit sent forth as smoke within itself and beholds the blackness that comes to it from it and laments, and it perceives the thorny reasonings and the twig-like preconceptions being burned up and completely reduced to ashes; but when these are consumed and the substance of the soul alone remains without passion, then the divine and immaterial fire is essentially united to it; and immediately it is kindled and becomes translucent and partakes, just as the furnace does of this perceptible fire; (261) so also the body, of the divine and ineffable light, and it too becomes fire by participation.

But this could never happen in us, unless we abhor the world and all things in the world and lose our very souls according to the voice of the Lord. For that fire is not otherwise kindled in us; which those who have received were not only completely freed from spiritual diseases, but also healed many others who were spiritually sick and weak, having come out of the devil's nets, and brought them as gifts to the Lord Christ. For having been wisely taught all knowledge and all art from that divine fire, they were well-pleasing to God through all things in all their life and in their entire existence, such as was Peter, the divine apostle, who received the keys of the kingdom, such as was Paul, who was caught up to the third heaven, and in succession the divine apostles; such also were our holy and God-bearing fathers and teachers, who made the heresies disappear like thorns by means of this divine fire, who command the demons as useless and weak servants (and they, obeying them with fear, have become and always are such), who so loved God as not even to spare their own soul. These, therefore, and as many as are like them, are said to have served and to serve God always, but those still liable for sins are not, but resemble wicked servants who have offended their own master; and those still troubled by passions, to those who are always fighting and who resist or wrestle; but those who have not yet acquired the virtues, but are striving to acquire them, are compared to those with mutilated bodies or even to the poor who lack the necessities of life (262), who are rather in need of the members and necessities they lack, and are not providing for others what is needed or able to serve without reward.

But it is necessary according to the voice of the Apostle that we, having achieved every virtue, make our man according to God complete, in nothing lacking

112

οὕτω λεγούσης· "Ἀπέλθετε ἀπ᾿ ἐμοῦ οἱ κατηραμένοι εἰς τό πῦρ τό αἰώνιον τό ἡτοιμασμένον τῷ (260) διαβόλῳ καί τοῖς ἀγγέλοις αὐτοῦ. Ἐπείνασα γάρ" καί τά ἑξῆς ἀπαριθμησάμενος "ἐν ἀσθενείᾳ ἤμην, εἶπε, καί οὐ διακονήσατέ μοι". Πῶς οὖν ἤ ποίῳ προσώπῳ αὐτόν θεασώμεθα, τό ἑκάστου ἔργον ἐρχόμενον ἐπισκέψασθαι;

Μή πλανᾶσθε· ὁ Θεός πῦρ ἐστι καί πῦρ ἦλθε καί ἔβαλεν ἐπί τῆς γῆς· ὅ καί περιέρχεται ζητῶν ὕλην δράξασθαι, ἤτοι πρόθεσιν καί προαίρεσιν ἀγαθήν, καί ἐμπεσεῖν εἰς αὐτήν καί ἀναφθῆναι. Εἰς οὕς δέ ἀναφθῇ, αἴρεται εἰς φλόγα μεγάλην καί ἀφικνεῖται ἕως τῶν οὐρανῶν καί οὐκ ἐᾷ τόν ἐμπυρισθέντα ἀργεῖν ὅλως ἤ ἠρεμεῖν. Οὐδέ ἀγνώστως, ὥς τινες οἴονται τῶν νεκρῶν, κατακαίει τήν ἐμπρησθεῖσαν ψυχήν - οὐδέ γάρ ἀναίσθητος ὕλη ἐστίν , ἀλλ᾿ ἐν αἰσθήσει καί γνώσει καί ὀδύνῃ ἀφορήτῳ τό καταρχάς· αἰσθητική γάρ ὑπάρχει καί λογική· μετά δέ ταῦτα, καθαράν τοῦ ῥύπου τῶν παθῶν τελείως ἡμᾶς, τίνεται τροφή καί πόσις, φωτισμός καί χαρά ἀδιαλείπτως ἐντός ἡμῶν, καί φῶς αὐτούς ἡμᾶς κατά μέθεξιν ἀπεργάζεται. Ὥσπερ γάρ ἐκκαιόμενος κλίβανος καταρχάς μέν ἐκ τοῦ τῆς ὕλης ἐκπεμπομένου καπνοῦ μᾶλλον μελαίνεται, ἐπάν δέ σφοδρῶς ἐκκαῇ, ὅλος διαυγής γίνεται καί τοῦ πυρός ὅμοιος καί οὐδεμίαν μελανίαν ἐκ τοῦ καπνοῦ ἔκτοτε κατά μέθεξιν προσλαμβάνει, οὕτω δή καί ψυχή ἡ τῷ θείῳ ἐναρξαμένη πόθῳ ἐκκαίεται πρῶτα μέν τόν τῶν παθῶν ζόφον ἐν τῷ πυρί τοῦ Πνεύματος ὡς καπνόν ἐν ἑαυτῇ ἐκπεμπόμενον καθορᾷ καί τήν προσοῦσαν αὐτῇ ἐξ αὐτοῦ μελανίαν ἐνοπτρίζεται καί θρηνεῖ καί τούς ἀκανθώδεις λογισμούς καί τάς φρυγανώδεις προλήψεις καταφλεγομένας καί ἀποτεφρουμένας τέλεον ἐπαισθάνεται· ἐπάν δέ ταῦτα ἐξαναλωθῇ καί ἡ τῆς ψυχῆς οὐσία μόνη χωρίς πάθους ἐναπομείνῃ, τότε οὐσιωδῶς καί αὐτῇ ἑνοῦται τό θεῖον καί ἄϋλον πῦρ· καί εὐθύς ἀνάπτεται καί διαυγάζει καί μεταλαμβάνει, ὥσπερ ὁ κλίβανος, τοῦ αἰσθητοῦ τούτου πυρός· (261) οὕτω καί τό σῶμα, τοῦ θείου καί ἀρρήτου φωτός, καί αὐτό, πῦρ κατά μέθεξιν γίνεται.

Οὐκ ἄν δέ τοῦτό ποτε γένηται ἐν ἡμῖν, ἐάν μή τόν κόσμον καί τά ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ ἅπαντα βδελυξώμεθα καί αὐτάς ἡμῶν τάς ψυχάς κατά τήν τοῦ Κυρίου φωνήν ἀπολέσωμεν. Τό γάρ πῦρ ἐκεῖνο ἄλλως ἐν ἡμῖν οὐκ ἀνάπτεται· ὅ οἱ λαβόντες οὐ μόνον νοσημάτων ψυχικῶν παντελῶς ἀπηλλάγησαν, ἀλλά καί πολλούς ἄλλους, ἐκ τῶν δικτύων ἐξελθόντες τοῦ διαβόλου, νοσοῦντας ψυχικῶς καί ἀσθενοῦντας ἰάσαντο καί τῷ δεσπότῃ Χριστῷ ὡς δῶρα τούτους προσήγαγον. Ἐκ γάρ τοῦ πυρός ἐκείνου τοῦ θείου πᾶσαν ἐπιστήμην καί πᾶσαν τέχνην οὗτοι σοφῶς διδαχθέντες, διά πάντων ἐν παντί τῷ βίῳ καί ἐν πάσῃ αὐτῶν τῇ ζωῇ τῷ Θεῷ εὐηρέστησαν, οἷος ἦν ὁ τάς κλεῖς τῆς βασιλείας λαβών Πέτρος ὁ θεῖος ἀπόστολος, οἷος ἦν Παῦλος ὁ εἰς τρίτον ἁρπαγείς οὐρανόν, καί καθεξῆς οἱ θεῖοι ἀπόστολοι· τοιοῦτοι δέ ὑπῆρχον καί οἱ ἅγιοι καί θεοφόροι πατέρες ἡμῶν καί διδάσκαλοι, οἱ τάς αἱρέσεις διά τοῦ πυρός τούτου τοῦ θείου ὡς ἀκάνθας ἐξαφανίσαντες, οἱ τοῖς δαίμοσιν ὡς δούλοις ἀχρείοις καί ἀσθενέσιν ἐπιτάσσοντες (κἀκεῖνοι, μετά φόβου αὐτοῖς ὑπακούοντες, τοιοῦτοι γεγόνασι καί ἀεί γίνονται), οἱ οὕτως τόν Θεόν ἀγαπήσαντες, ὡς μηδέ τῆς ἑαυτῶν φείσασθαι ψυχῆς. Οὗτοι τοιγαροῦν καί ὅσοι κατ᾿ αὐτούς τῷ Θεῷ δουλεῦσαι καί δουλεύειν ἀεί λέγονται, οἱ δέ ἁμαρτίαις ἔτι ὄντες ὑπεύθυνοι οὐχί, ἀλλά δούλοις ἐοίκασι πονηροῖς καί προσκεκρουκόσι τῷ ἰδίῳ δεσπότῃ· οἱ δέ καί ὑπό παθῶν ἔτι ὀχλούμενοι, τοῖς ἀεί μαχομένοις καί τοῖς ἀντιπίπτουσιν ἤ παλαίουσιν· οἱ δέ τάς ἀρετάς ἀκμήν μή κτησάμενοι, ἀγωνιζόμενοι δέ ταύτας κτήσασθαι, τοῖς ἠκρωτηριασμένοις τά σώματα ἤ καί τοῖς λειπομένοις τῶν πρός ζωήν πένησι (262) παρεικάζονται, δεομένοις μᾶλλον ὧν ὑστεροῦνται μελῶν καί χρειῶν, οὐχί δέ παρέχουσιν ἄλλοις τά πρός τήν χρείαν ἤ ἀμισθί δυναμένοις δουλεύειν.

Χρεών δέ ἐστι κατά τήν τοῦ Ἀποστόλου φωνήν πᾶσαν ἀρετήν κατορθώσαντας ἄρτιον ἡμᾶς ἀποτελέσαι τόν κατά Θεόν ἡμῶν ἄνθρωπον, ἐν μηδενί μηδέν