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QUESTION 33.

What is: "Truly I say to you, that whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says is happening, it will be for him whatever he says?" What is, "And does not doubt?"

Answer. The divine and great Apostle, defining what faith is, says: "Faith is

the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." But if someone should also define it as an inward good, and as a true knowledge demonstrating secret goods, he has not erred from the truth. But the Lord, teaching about the secret goods, and things hoped for, and not seen, says: The kingdom of God is within you. Hearing that the faith of God is the same as the kingdom of God, it is divided from the kingdom by concept alone. For faith is a formless kingdom of God; while the kingdom is faith formed in a God-like manner.

So according to this reasoning, faith is not outside of us, which, being activated by the divine commandments, becomes the kingdom of God, known only to those who possess it; and the kingdom of God is faith activated; and the kingdom of God brings about the immediate union with God for those who reign according to it.

Faith has been clearly shown to be the relational power for the supernatural, immediate, and perfect union of the believer with God in whom he believes. Since, therefore, man consists of soul and body, he is shaken by two laws (I mean of the flesh and of the spirit), and the law of the flesh has its energy according to sensation, while that of the spirit has its energy according to the intellect; and the one of the flesh, being activated according to sensation, is by nature bound to matter; while the one of the spirit, being activated according to the intellect, makes its union with God immediate; rightly he who has not doubted in his heart, that is, has not discerned with his intellect, or rather, has not severed the immediate union with God that has come about through faith, as one who is dispassionate, or rather, has already become God through faith by the union, will say to this mountain to move, and it will move; speaking demonstratively by means of 'this', indicating the mindset and law of the flesh, which is truly heavy and difficult to move; and as far as natural power is concerned, utterly immobile and unshakable. For so rooted is the power of irrationality in the nature of men through (376) sensation, that many think man is nothing else but flesh, having sensation as a power for the enjoyment of the present life. All things, therefore, are possible for one who believes and does not doubt; that is, for one not separated from the union with God which has come about for him through faith according to the intellect, on account of the soul's relation to the body according to sensation: all things that alienate the intellect from the world and the flesh, but make it belong to God, perfected by accomplishments.

SCHOLIA. a. He calls bare faith a formless kingdom, not having from the virtues

the divine likeness. But he calls kingdom the faith that has through works the divine form of goodness.

b. Faith, he says, is undemonstrated knowledge. But if it is undemonstrated knowledge, then faith is a relation beyond nature, through which we are united to God unknowingly, but not demonstratively, according to the union that is beyond intellection.

c. The intellect, having received the immediate union with God, has its natural power of intellection and being intellected completely at rest. Whenever, then, it breaks this union by thinking of something after God, it has doubted, severing the union that is beyond intellection; in which, as long as it is

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ΕΡΩΤΗΣΙΣ ΛΓ ΄.

Τί ἐστιν· " Ἀμήν λέγω ὑμῖν, ὅτι ὅς ἄν εἴπῃ τῷ ὄρει τούτῳ, Ἄρθητι καί βλήθητι εἰς τήν θάλασσαν, καί μή διακριθῇ ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ αὐτοῦ, ἀλλά πιστεύσῃ ὅτι ἅ λέγει γίνεται, ἔσται αὐτῷ ὅ ἐάν εἴπῃ;" Τί ἐστι τό, "Καί μή διακριθῆ;"

Ἀπόκρισις. Ὁ μέν θεῖος καί μέγας Ἀπόστολος, τί ἐστι πίστις ὁρίζων, φησί· "Πίστις ἐστίν

ἐλπιζομένων ὑπόστασις, καί πραγμάτων ἔλεγχος οὐ βλεπομένων." Εἰ δέ τις καί ἐνδιάθετος ἀγαθόν αὐτήν ὁρίσαιτο, καί γνῶσιν ἀληθῆ τῶν ἀποῤῥήτων ἀγαθῶν ἀποδεικτικήν, τῆς ἀληθείας οὐ διήμαρτεν. Ὁ δέ Κύριος διδάσκων περί τῶν ἀποῤῥήτων ἀγαθῶν, καί τῶν ἐλπιζομένων, καί οὐχ ὁρωμένων, φησίν· Ἡ βασιλεία τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐντός ὑμῶν ἐστιν. Ἀκούων ταὐτόν τῇ βασιλείᾳ τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἡ τοῦ Θεοῦ πίστις ἐστίν, κατά μόνην ἐπίνοιαν διαιρουμένη πρός τήν βασιλείαν. Ἡ μέν γάρ πίστις ἀνείδεος Θεοῦ βασιλεία ἐστίν· ἡ δέ βασιλεία, πίστις θεοειδῶς εἰδοπεποιημένη.

Ὥστε κατά τοῦτον τόν λόγον, οὐκ ἐκτός ἡμῶν ἐστιν ἡ πίστις, ἥτις ἐνεργουμένη ταῖς θείαις ἐντολαῖς, γίνεται βασιλεία Θεοῦ, μόνοις γινωσκομένη τοῖς ἔχουσιν· ἡ δέ βασιλεία τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐνεργουμένη πίστις ἐστίν· ἡ δέ βασιλεία τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν κατ᾿ αὐτήν βασιλευόντων ἄμεσον πρός Θεόν ποιεῖται τήν ἕνωσιν.

Ἡ πίστις ἀπεδείχθη σαφῶς ὑπάρχουσα δύναμις σχετική τῆς ὑπέρ φύσιν ἀμέσου τοῦ πιστεύοντος πρός τόν πιστευόμενον Θεόν τελείας ἑνώσεως. Ἐπειδή τοίνυν ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἐκ ψυχῆς ὑπάρχων καί σώματος, δυσί σαλεύεται νόμοις (σαρκός λέγω καί πνεύματος), καί ὁ μέν τῆς σαρκός νόμος, κατά τήν αἴσθησιν, ὁ δέ τοῦ πνεύματος, κατά τόν νοῦν κέκτηται τήν ἐνέγειαν· καί ὁ μέν τῆς σαρκός, ὕλῃ συνδεῖν πέφυκε, κατά τήν αἴσθησιν ἐνεργούμενος· ὁ δέ τοῦ πνεύματος, κατά τόν νοῦν ἐνεργούμενος, πρός τόν Θεόν ἀμέσως ποιεῖται τήν ἕνωσιν· εἰκότως ὁ μή διακριθείς ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ αὐτοῦ, τουτέστι, τῷ νοΐ μή διακρίνας, ἤγουν διατεμών τήν διά τῆς πίστεως πρός τόν Θεόν γεγενημένην ἄμεσον ἕνωσιν, ὡς ἀπαθής, μᾶλλον δέ Θεός ἤδη διά τῆς πίστεως τῇ ἑνώσει γεγενημένος· ἐρεῖ τῷ ὄρει τούτῳ μεταβῆναι, καί μεταβήσεται· δεικτικῶς διά τοῦ, τούτῳ, φάναι, τό φρόνημα καί τόν νόμον δηλῶν τῆς σαρκός, τόν βαρύν ὄντως καί δυσμετακίνητον· καί ὅσον πρός δύναμιν φυσικήν, παντελῶς ἀκίνητον καί ἀσάλευτον. Τοσοῦτον γάρ ἐῤῥίζωται τῇ φύσει τῶν ἀνθρώπων διά τῆς (376) αἰσθήσεως τῆς ἀλογίας ἡ δύναμις, ὥστε τούς πολλούς μηδ᾿ ἄλλο νομίζειν εἶναι τόν ἄνθρωπον, ἤ σάρκα, δύναμιν πρός ἀπόλαυσιν τῆς παρούσης ζωῆς τήν αἴσθησιν ἔχουσαν. Πάντα γοῦν δυνατά τῷ πιστεύοντι καί μή διακρινομένῳ· τουτέστι, μή διαιρουμένῳ τῆς κατά νοῦν διά τῆς πίστεως γεγενημένης αὐτῷ πρός τόν Θεόν ἑνώσεως, διά τήν πρός τό σῶμα τῆς ψυχῆς κατά τήν αἴσθησιν σχέσιν· ὅσα κόσμου καί σαρκός τόν νοῦν ἀλλοτριοῖ, Θεῷ δέ προσοικειοῖ τετελειωμένα τοῖς κατορθώμασιν.

ΣΧΟΛΙΑ. α΄. Τήν ψιλήν πίστιν λέγει βασιλείαν ἀνείδεον, οὐκ ἔχουσαν τήν ἐκ τῶν ἀρετῶν

θείαν ὁμοίωσιν. Βασιλείαν δέ λέγει τήν ἔχουσαν διά τῶν ἔργων τήν θείαν μορφήν τῆς ἀγαθότητος πίστιν.

β΄. Πίστις, φησίν, ἀναπόδεικτος γνῶσίς ἐστιν. Εἰ δέ γνῶσις ἀναπόδεικτός ἐστιν, ἄρα σχέσις ἐστίν ὑπέρ φύσιν ἡ πίστις, δι᾿ ἧς ἀγνώστως, ἀλλ᾿ οὐκ ἀποδεικτικῶς ἑνούμεθα τῷ Θεῷ, κατά τήν ὑπέρ νόησιν ἕνωσιν.

γ΄. Τήν ἄμεσον λαβών πρός τόν Θεόν ἕνωσιν ὁ νοῦς, τήν τοῦ νοεῖν καί νοεῖσθαι κατά φύσιν παντελῶς δύναμιν ἔχει σχολάζουσαν. Ὁπηνίκα γοῦν ταύτην λύσῃ νοήσας τι τῶν μετά Θεόν, διεκρίθη τεμών τήν ὑπέρ νόησιν ἕνωσιν· καθ᾿ ἥν ἕως ἐστί