118

"Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world," because no one could through it know the true wisdom, the truly existing God? For if through letters and learning the knowledge of true wisdom (273) and the knowledge of God were to be given to us, brothers, what need was there then for faith or for divine baptism or for the partaking of the mysteries themselves? None at all. "For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God, he says, through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe." And these things, indeed, the herald and bridgeroom's attendant of the Church of Christ [says].

But I shall rightly mourn and weep over the crushing of my members, of my race, of my brothers according to flesh and spirit, because we who have put on Christ through baptism, accounting the mysteries of Christ as nothing, think to receive the knowledge of the truth of God through the wisdom of the world and we suppose this, merely to read the divinely inspired writings of the saints, to be the comprehension of orthodoxy and we consider this to be accurate and certain knowledge of the Holy Trinity; and not only this, but even the more serious among us foolishly suppose that contemplation, which comes about through the Spirit alone in the worthy, is this very refashioning of concepts in their minds. O the simple-mindedness, O the hardness of heart! And those who, without reading, wish to delve into the depths of God and hasten to theologize, when they hear about God that, just as in three suns there is one blending of light, so also in the Trinity there is an effulgence of one divinity, they immediately fashion three suns in their mind, united in light, that is, in essence, but separated in their hypostases, and they foolishly think that they are seeing that divinity itself and that the holy and consubstantial and undivided Trinity is thus like the example. But this is not so, it is not so. For no one is able to understand well (274) and speak about the Holy Trinity from the reading of the Scriptures alone, but one who receives these things by faith alone abides by what is written and investigates nothing further, but to those who are curious and who rashly dare to meddle in divine things, he is altogether unable to say anything beyond what is written and what he was taught.

And that this is true, hear what Christ says: "No one knows the Son except the Father, nor does anyone know the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him." Through these and similar sayings, therefore, he stops the shameless and ungated mouths of those who say and think that through external wisdom and the learning of letters they know the real truth, God himself, and acquire the knowledge of the hidden mysteries in the Spirit of God. For if no one knows the Son except the Father, nor does anyone know the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal his depths and mysteries—for my mystery is for me and for mine, who then of the wise or orators or learned men on earth, other than those whose mind has been purified by extreme philosophy and ascetic practice, and who truly possess the trained senses of the soul, would be able, without the revelation from above through the Lord, to know from human wisdom alone the hidden mysteries of God, which through noetic contemplation, effected by the divine Spirit, are revealed to those to whom it was given and is always given to know these things through grace from above? The knowledge of these things belongs to those whose mind is illuminated each day by the Holy Spirit because of the purity of their soul, whose eyes have been clearly opened by the rays of the sun of (275) righteousness, whose word of knowledge and word of wisdom comes through the Spirit alone, whose understanding and fear of God is preserved through love and peace in goodness and in excellence of character, with self-control and faith. Of these is the knowledge of divine things,

118

Οὐχί ἐμώρανεν ὁ Θεός τήν σοφίαν τοῦ κόσμου τούτου", διά τό μή δύνασθαί τινα δι᾿ αὐτῆς ἐπιγνῶναι τήν ἀληθινήν σοφίαν, τόν ὄντως ὄντα Θεόν; Εἰ γάρ διά γραμμάτων καί μαθημάτων ἡ ἐπίγνωσις τῆς ἀληθοῦ σοφίας (273) καί τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ γνώσεως ἔμελλεν ἡμῖν, ἀδελφοί, δίδοσθαι, τίς ἦν ἄρα χρεία τῆς πίστεως ἤ τοῦ θείου βαπτίσματος ἤ τῆς τῶν μυστηρίων αὐτῶν μεταλήψεως; Οὐδεμία μενοῦν. "Ἐπεί δέ διά τῆς σοφίας οὐκ ἔγνω ὁ κόσμος τόν Θεόν, εὐδόκησεν ὁ Θεός, φησί, διά τῆς μωρίας τοῦ κηρύγματος σῶσαι τούς πιστεύοντας". Καί ταῦτα μέν ὁ κῆρυξ καί νυμφαγωγός τῆς τοῦ Χριστοῦ Ἐκκλησίας.

Ἐγώ δέ εἰκότως θρηνήσω καί κλαύσομαι ἐπί τῇ συντριβῇ τῶν ἐμῶν μελῶν, τοῦ ἐμοῦ γένους, τῶν κατά σάρκα καί πνεῦμά μου ἀδελφῶν, ὅτι οἱ τόν Χριστόν διά τοῦ βαπτίσματος ἐνδυσάμενοι, τά τοῦ Χριστοῦ μυστήρια εἰς οὐδέν λογιζόμενοι, τήν ἐπίγνωσιν τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ ἀληθείας διά τῆς τοῦ κόσμου σοφίας λαμβάνειν νομίζομεν καί τό μόνον ἀναγνῶναι τάς θεοπνεύστους συγγραφάς τῶν ἁγίων ὀρθοδοξίας εἶναι κατάληψιν τοῦτο οἰόμεθα καί τῆς Ἁγίας Τριάδος ἀκριβῆ καί βεβαίαν εἴδησιν τοῦτο νομίζομεν· οὐ μόνον δέ, ἀλλά καί τῶν ἄλλων ἡμῶν οἱ σεμνότεροι θεωρίαν τήν διά μόνου τοῦ Πνεύματος γινομένην ἐν τοῖς ἀξίοις, αὐτήν τήν ἐν ταῖς διανοίαις αὐτῶν ἀνάπλασιν τῶν νοημάτων ἀφρόνως εἶναι ὑπολαμβάνουσιν. Ὤ τῆς εὐηθείας, ὤ τῆς πωρώσεως. Οἱ δέ καί ἐμβαθύνειν ἀνάγνως ἐθέλοντες εἰς τά τοῦ Θεοῦ βάθη καί θεολογεῖν ἐπειγόμενοι, ὅταν ἀκούσωσι περί Θεοῦ ὅτι, ὥσπερ ἐν τρισίν ἡλίοις μία φωτός ἐστι σύγκρασις, οὕτω καί ἐν τῇ Τριάδι μιᾶς θεότητος ἔλλαμψις, αὐτίκα τρεῖς ἡλίους ἐν τῷ νοΐ αὐτῶν ἀναπλάττουσι, τῷ μέν φωτί ἡνωμένους, ἤτοι τῇ οὐσίᾳ, ταῖς δέ ὑποστάσεσι διακεχωρισμένους, καί οἴονται ἀφρόνως ἐκείνην αὐτήν ὁρᾶν τήν θεότητα καί οὕτως εἶναι τήν ἁγίαν καί ὁμοούσιον καί ἀδιαίρετον Τριάδα ὁμοίαν τῷ παραδείγματι. Ἀλλ᾿ οὐκ ἔστι τοῦτο, οὐκ ἔστιν. Οὐδείς γάρ τά περί τῆς Ἁγίας Τριάδος νοῆσαι καλῶς (274) καί εἰπεῖν δύναται ἀπό μόνης τῆς τῶν Γραφῶν ἀναγνώσεως, πίστει δέ μόνῃ ταῦτα δεχόμενος, ἐμμένει μέν τοῖς γεγραμμένοις καί πλέον οὐδέν περιεργάζεται, τοῖς δέ περιέργοις καί πολυπραγμονεῖν τά θεῖα θρασέως κατατολμῶσιν, ἔξω τῶν γεγραμμένων καί ὧν ἐδιδάχθη, εἰπεῖν ὅλως οὐ δύναται.

Ὅτι δέ τοῦτό ἐστιν ἀληθές, ἄκουσον τί φησιν ὁ Χριστός· "Οὐδείς ἐπιγινώσκει τόν Υἱόν εἰ μή ὁ Πατήρ, οὐδέ τόν Πατέρα τις ἐπιγινώσκει εἰ μή ὁ Υἱός καί ᾧ ἄν βούληται ὁ Υἱός ἀποκαλύψαι". ∆ιά τούτων οὖν καί τῶν τοιούτων ῥημάτων ἀποφράττει τά ἀναίσχυντα καί ἀπύλωτα στόματα τῶν λεγόντων καί νομιζόντων διά τῆς ἔξωθεν σοφίας καί τῆς τῶν γραμμάτων μαθήσεως ἐπιγινώσκειν τήν ὄντως ἀλήθειαν, αὐτόν τόν Θεόν, καί τήν ἐπίγνωσιν κτᾶσθαι τῶν κεκρυμμένων μυστηρίων ἐν Πνεύματι τοῦ Θεοῦ. Εἰ γάρ τόν Υἱόν οὐδείς ἐπιγινώσκει εἰ μή ὁ Πατήρ, οὐδέ τόν Πατέρα τις ἐπιγινώσκει εἰ μή ὁ Υἱός καί ᾧ ἄν βούληται ὁ Υἱός ἀποκαλύψαι τά βάθη τούτου καί τά μυστήρια - τό γάρ μυστήριόν μου ἐμοί καί τοῖς ἐμοῖς , τίς ἄρα τῶν ἐπί γῆς ἀνθρώπων σοφῶν ἤ ῥητόρων ἤ μαθηματικῶν ἕτερος, πλήν τῶν κεκαθαρμένων τόν νοῦν ἐξ ἄκρας φιλοσοφίας τε καί ἀσκήσεως, καί γεγυμνασμένα τά τῆς ψυχῆς ἐπιφερομένων ἀληθῶς αἰσθητήρια, ἄνευ τῆς ἄνωθεν διά τοῦ Κυρίου ἀποκαλύψεως ἐκ μόνης γνῶναι δυνηθείη τῆς ἀνθρωπίνης σοφίας τά κεκρυμμένα μυστήρια τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἅ διά νοερᾶς θεωρίας, τῆς ὑπό τοῦ θείου Πνεύματος ἐνεργουμένης, ἀνακαλύπτονται οἷς ἐδόθη καί ἀεί δίδοται εἰδέναι ταῦτα διά τῆς ἄνωθεν χάριτος; Ἐκείνων ἐστίν ἡ τούτων γνῶσις, ὧν ὁ νοῦς καθ᾿ ἑκάστην ὑπό τοῦ Ἁγίου καταλαμπάνεται Πνεύματος διά τήν τῆς ψυχῆς καθαρότητα, ὧν οἱ ὀφθαλμοί ὑπό τῶν ἀκτίνων τοῦ ἡλίου τῆς (275) δικαιοσύνης τρανῶς ἠνεῴχθησαν, ὧν ὁ λόγος τῆς γνώσεως καί ὁ λόγος τῆς σοφίας διά μόνου τοῦ Πνεύματος, ὧν ἡ σύνεσις καί ὁ φόβος τοῦ Θεοῦ διά τῆς ἀγάπης καί τῆς εἰρήνης τετήρηται ἐν τῇ ἀγαθωσύνῃ καί τῇ τῶν τρόπων χρηστότητι ἐγκρατῶς μετά πίστεως. Τούτων ἡ γνῶσις τῶν θείων,