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good. Of these, those who have chosen present things have the power to be rich, to live luxuriously, to take pleasure, and whatever they are able; for they will have none of the good things to come. But those who have judged to receive the things of the future kingdom are not permitted to appropriate for themselves any of the things here (as being the property of another king) except water only and bread, and these being procured with sweat for the sake of living (since it is not permitted to die voluntarily), and also one cloak; for it is not permitted to stand naked on account of the all-seeing heaven. If, then, you wish to hear the precise account of the matter, those whom you said a little earlier were being wronged, they themselves are the ones who do more wrong, because those who have chosen the things to come associate with the evil in the present, enjoying many of the same things as them (life itself, light, bread, water, clothing, and certain other such things), while those who are thought by you to be doing wrong do not share at all with the good men in the things to come. And the father answered to these things: Now that you have persuaded me that those who do wrong are themselves wronged, while those who are wronged have the greater advantage, the whole matter appears even more unjust to me, because those who seem to do wrong concede many things to those who have chosen the things to come, while those who seem to be wronged are themselves doing wrong, because they do not provide the same things there to those who have made concessions to them here [what they conceded to them]. And Peter: This is not unjust either, because each one has the power to choose present things or future things, whether they be small or great. By his own judgment and will, the one who chooses is not wronged, I say, not even if he chooses the small things, since the great things were set before him; for the small things were also set before him. And the father said: You have spoken correctly; for it has been said by a certain wise Greek: 'The cause is in the one who chooses, god is blameless'. But furthermore, explain this account to me also. I remember Clement telling me that we suffer injustices and passions for the remission of sins. And Peter: It is also correct in this way. For we who have chosen the things to come, the more things we possess, whether clothing or food or drink or anything else, we possess sins because we ought to have nothing, as I explained the account a little earlier. For all, possessions are sins. The deprivation of these, in whatever way, is a removal of sins. And the father said: It is consistent, as you have distinguished the two boundaries of the two kings, that it is for each of those under their authority to choose what he wishes. What then? And do we suffer passions justly? And Peter: Most justly; for since the rule for those who are being saved is (as I said) that nothing belongs to anyone, but many possessions belong to many (which are otherwise also sins), for this reason, out of the exceeding love of God for mankind, passions are brought upon those who do not live sincerely, so that, because of some love for God, they may be saved from eternal punishments by means of temporary chastisements. And the father: What then? Do we not see many impious poor people? On account of this, are these also among those who are being saved? And Peter: Not at all. For the poverty of the poor man is not acceptable, if he longs for what he ought not. So that some are rich in possessions by their choice and are punished as desiring to have more. But neither is one necessarily righteous in being poor; for he can be poor in possessions, but desire or even do

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ἀγαθῷ. ὧν οἱ ἑλόμενοι τὰ παρόντα ἐξουσίαν ἔχουσιν πλουτεῖν, τρυφᾶν, ἥδε- σθαι, καὶ πᾶν ὅ τι ἂν δύνωνται· τῶν γὰρ ἐσομένων ἀγαθῶν οὐδὲν ἕξουσιν. οἱ δὲ τὰ τῆς μελλούσης βασιλείας κρίναντες λαβεῖν τῶν ἐνταῦθα (ὡς ἀλ- λοτρίου βασιλέως ἴδια ὄντα) αὑτοῖς νοσφίζεσθαι οὐκ ἔξεστιν ἢ ὕδατος μόνου καὶ ἄρτου καὶ τούτων μετὰ ἱδρώτων ποριζομένων πρὸς τὸ ζῆν (ἐπειδὴ ἑκοντὶ ἀποθανεῖν οὐκ ἔξεστιν), ἔτι δὲ καὶ περιβολαίου ἑνός· γυμνὸν γὰρ ἑστάναι οὐκ ἐφίεται ἕνεκεν τοῦ πάντα ὁρῶντος οὐρανοῦ. εἰ μὲν οὖν τὸν ἀκριβῆ τοῦ πράγματος λόγον ἀκοῦσαι θέλεις, οὓς μικρῷ τάχιον εἴρηκας ἀδικεῖσθαι, αὐτοὶ μᾶλλον ἀδικοῦσιν, ὅτι αὐτοὶ μὲν οἱ τὰ ἐσόμενα ἑλόμενοι ἐν τοῖς παροῦσιν σύνεισιν τοῖς κακοῖς, κατὰ πολλὰ τῶν ἴσων αὐτοῖς ἀπολαύοντες (αὐτοῦ τε τοῦ ζῆν, τοῦ φωτός, τοῦ ἄρτου, τοῦ ὕδατος, τοῦ ἱματίου καὶ ἄλλων τοιούτων τινῶν), οἱ δὲ ἀδικεῖν ὑπὸ σοῦ νομισθέντες τοῖς ἐσομένοις ἀγαθοῖς ἀν- δράσιν οὐδὲν συνυπάρχουσιν. καὶ ὁ πατὴρ πρὸς ταῦτα ἀπεκρίνατο· Νῦν με ὅτε πέπεικας ὅτι οἱ ἀδικοῦντες αὐτοὶ ἀδικοῦνται, οἱ δὲ ἀδικούμενοι μᾶλλον πλεονεκτοῦσιν, ἔτι μᾶλλον ἀδικώτατον ὅλον μοι φαίνεται τὸ πρᾶγμα, ὅτι οἱ μὲν δοκοῦντες ἀδικεῖν πολλὰ τοῖς τὰ ἐσόμενα ἑλομένοις συνχωροῦσιν, οἱ δὲ δοκοῦντες ἀδικεῖσθαι αὐτοὶ ἀδικοῦσιν, ὅτι τὰ ὅμοια οὐ παρέχουσιν ἐκεῖ τοῖς ἐνταῦθα αὐτοῖς συνκεχωρηκόσιν [ἃ αὐτοὶ αὐτοῖς συνεχώρησαν]. καὶ ὁ Πέτρος· Oὐδὲ τοῦτο ἄδικον διὰ τὸ ἐξουσίαν ἔχειν ἕκαστον τὰ παρ- όντα αἱρεῖσθαι ἢ τὰ μέλλοντα, εἴτε μικρὰ εἴη εἴτε μεγάλα. ἰδίᾳ κρίσει καὶ βουλῇ ὁ ἑλόμενος οὐκ ἀδικεῖται, λέγω δὲ οὐδ' ἂν τὰ μικρὰ ἕληται, ἐπεὶ προέκειτο τὰ μεγάλα· προέκειτο γὰρ αὐτῷ καὶ τὰ μικρά. καὶ ὁ πατὴρ ἔφη· Ὀρθῶς ἔφης· καὶ γὰρ εἴρηταί τινι Ἑλλήνων σοφῷ· «Aἰτία ἑλομένων, θεὸς ἀναίτιος». ἀλλ' ἔτι μὴν καὶ τοῦτόν μοι δίελθε τὸν λόγον. μέμνημαι τὸν Κλήμεντα εἰπόντα μοι ὅτι τὰ ἀδικήματα καὶ τὰ πάθη εἰς ἄφεσιν ἁμαρτιῶν πάσχομεν. καὶ ὁ Πέτρος· Ὀρθῶς ἔχει καὶ οὕτως. ἡμεῖς γὰρ οἱ ἑλόμενοι τὰ ἐσόμενα, ἃ κεκτήμεθα πλείονα, εἴτε ἐσθῆτα εἴτε βρώματα εἴτε ποτὰ εἴτε ἄλλα τινά, ἁμαρτίας κεκτή- μεθα διὰ τὸ δεῖν μηδὲν ἔχειν, ὡς μικρῷ τάχιον διεῖλον τὸν λόγον. πᾶσι τὰ κτήματα ἁμαρτήματα. ἡ τούτων ὁπώσποτε στέρησις ἁμαρτιῶν ἐστιν ἀφαίρεσις. καὶ ὁ πατὴρ ἔφη· Ἀκολούθως ἔχει, καθὼς δύο διεῖλας ὅρους τῶν δύο βασιλέων, τὰ ἐφ' ἑκάστῳ τῶν ὑπὸ τὴν ἐξουσίαν αὐτῶν ὄντων αἱρεῖσθαι ὃ βούλεται. τί δέ; καὶ τὰ πάθη εἰ δικαίως πάσχομεν; καὶ ὁ Πέτρος· ∆ικαιότατα· ἐπεὶ γὰρ ὁ τῶν σῳζομένων ὅρος ἐστίν (ὡς ἔφην) τὸ μηδενὶ μηδὲν ὑπάρχειν, ὑπάρχει δὲ πολλὰ πολλοῖς κτήματα (τὰ ἄλλως καὶ ἁμαρτήματα), τούτου χάριν ἐξ ὑπερβαλλούσης θεοῦ φιλανθρωπίας ἐπάγεται τὰ πάθη τοῖς μὴ εἰλικρινῶς πολιτευομένοις, ἵνα διὰ τὸ ποσῶς φιλόθεον προσκαίροις τιμωρίαις αἰωνίων σωθῶσιν κολάσεων. καὶ ὁ πατήρ· Τί δέ; οὐ πολλοὺς ἀσεβεῖς ὁρῶμεν πένητας; παρὰ τοῦτο καὶ οὗτοι τῶν σῳζομένων εἰσίν; καὶ ὁ Πέτρος· Oὐ πάντως. οὐ γὰρ ἀποδεκτὴ ἡ τοῦ πένητος πενία, ἐὰν ὀρέγηται ὧν οὐ χρή. ὥστε τινὲς τῇ προαιρέσει πλουτοῦσιν χρήμασιν καὶ ὡς πλεονεκτεῖν ἐπιθυμοῦντες τιμωροῦνται. ἀλλ' οὐδὲ ἐν τῷ πένητα εἶναί τινα πάντως δίκαιός ἐστιν· δύναται γὰρ πτωχὸς μὲν τοῖς χρήμασιν εἶναι, ἐπιθυμεῖν δὲ ἢ καὶ πράττειν