133

rivers of living water will flow from his belly.” If, therefore, the spring gushes forth, surely the river coming out and flowing down is seen by those who look; but if these things, according to those who think this way, are worked in us unknowingly, with us perceiving none of these things, it is clear that we would have no perception at all of eternal life either, which follows them and remains in us, nor will we see the light of the Holy Spirit, but we will remain dead and blind and without perception, just as now, so then; and thus our hope has become vain according to them and our course for nothing, while we are in death and do not receive a perception of eternal life.

But these things are not so, they are not, but rather what I have often said and will say again and will never cease to say. The Father is light, the Son is light, the Holy Spirit is light, one light, timeless, indivisible, unconfused, eternal, uncreated, without quantity, without need, invisible, as being outside all things and above all things both existing and conceived, which no man was ever able to see before being purified, nor did he receive it before seeing it. For many have indeed seen, but have not possessed it, like those deemed worthy to see a great treasure in the royal treasuries and who went away empty-handed. For in the beginning there often comes to those who repent fervently a divine illumination and enlightenment, but it immediately passes away; and if (308) they give themselves wholly until his death and seek it with toil, presenting themselves worthy and blameless in all things to the Lord, they receive it again, having returned perfectly; but if they are a little negligent and refuse to cast themselves into greater labors, loving their own souls, they become unworthy of such a gift and do not enter into eternal life, while still in the body; and if not now, clearly they will not enter after the departure from the body either. For if the one who received one talent and hid it was condemned because he did not multiply it, how much more will the one be condemned who did not even guard what he received, but lost it through negligence.

Here therefore, as all God-inspired Scripture says, is the festival, here the contests, and here the crowns of betrothal for the prizes are given to the victors, and for the defeated the beginning of shame and punishment becomes manifest and clear. And see how both the holy Forty Martyrs and all the others who martyred for Christ bear witness with this word. For the ones being in the lake of water itself received the crowns from the hand of God, but the one who fled to the warm bath was immediately dissolved and went away to the eternal fire. And Eustratios, renowned for virtue, being punished for Christ, said, "Now I know that I am a temple of God and His Spirit dwells in me. Depart from me, all you workers of iniquity." And to the judging tyrant he declared: "If the senses of your mind were not altered and your soul were not transformed to the earthly by the dough of the passions, I would have shown you that this crucified one happens to be savior and redeemer and benefactor." (309) Have you seen how faith without works is dead? For before the saint entered into the struggles of martyrdom, since he had faith alone, he did not have the Holy Spirit in himself, but when he showed his faith by his works, then he also knew himself to be a temple of God and he saw with the eyes of his mind the Holy Spirit of God dwelling knowably in him. What could be more manifest than this testimony?

But if some should say that those were martyrs, they suffered for Christ, and how is it possible for us to become equal to them, we would say this to them, that you yourselves also, if you wish, suffering and being punished for Christ, just as they did, will bear witness every day, not only in the day, but also in the night and in every hour. And how will this be? If you also to the

133

ποταμοί ῥεύσουσιν ἐκ τῆς κοιλίας αὐτοῦ ὕδατος ζῶντος». Εἰ οὖν ἡ πηγή βλύζει, πάντως καί ὁ ποταμός ἐξερχόμενος καί καταρρέων τοῖς βλέπουσι καθορᾶται· εἰ δέ ταῦτα, κατά τούς οὕτω φρονοῦντας, ἀγνώστως ἐν ἡμῖν ἐνεργοῦνται, μηδενός τούτων ἐπαισθανομένων ἡμῶν, εὔδηλον ὅτι οὐδέ τῆς αἰωνίου ζωῆς, τῆς συνεπομένης αὐτοῖς καί ἐν ἡμῖν μενούσης, ὅλως αἴσθησιν λάβωμεν, οὐδέ τό τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος φῶς θεασόμεθα, ἀλλά νεκροί καί τυφλοί καί ἀναίσθητοι διαμενοῦμεν, ὥσπερ ἄρτι, καί τότε· καί οὕτω ματαία ἡ ἐλπίς ἡμῶν γέγονε κατ᾿ αὐτούς καί ὁ δρόμος διακενῆς, ἐν τῷ θανάτῳ ὄντων ἡμῶν και τῆς αἰωνίου ζωῆς μή λαμβανόντων αἴσθησιν.

Ἀλλ᾿ οὐκ ἔστι ταῦτα, οὐκ ἔστιν, ἀλλ᾿ ὅπερ πολλάκις εἶπον καί πάλιν ἐρῶ καί οὐδέποτε λέγειν παύσομαι. Φῶς ὁ Πατήρ, φῶς ὁ Υἱός, φῶς τό Πνεῦμα τό Ἅγιον, ἕν φῶς, ἄχρονον, ἄτμητον, ἀσύγχυτον, ἀΐδιον, ἄκτιστον, ἄποσον, ἀνενδεές, ἀόρατον, ὡς ἔξω πάντων καί ὑπέρ πάντα καί ὄν καί νοούμενον, ὅπερ οὐδείς ποτε ἀνθρώπων πρό τοῦ καθαρθῆναι ἠδυνήθην θεάσασθαι, οὔτε πρό τοῦ θεάσασθαι ἔλαβεν. Πολλοί γάρ εἶδον μέν, οὐκ ἐκτήσαντο δέ, ὡς θησαυρόν πολύν ἐν τοῖς βασιλικοῖς ταμιείοις καταξιωθέντες ἰδεῖν καί ἀπελθόντες διακενῆς. Καί γάρ γίνεται μέν κατ᾿ ἀρχάς πολλάκις εἰς τούς μετανοοῦντας θερμῶς ἔλλαμψις θεία καί φωτισμός, εὐθύς δέ παρέρχεται· καί εἰ (308) μέν μέχρι θανάτου αὐτοῦ ἑαυτούς ὅλους ἐκδώσουσι καί ζητήσουσιν ἐμπόνως, ἀξίους σφᾶς αὐτούς καί ἀμέμπτους ἐν πᾶσι τῷ Κυρίῳ παριστῶντες, τελείως πάλιν ἐπανελθοῦσαν ταύτην λαμβάνουσιν· εἰ δέ μικρόν ῥᾳθυμήσουσι καί εἰς μείζονα κόπους ἑαυτούς ἐμβαλεῖν παραιτήσονται, τάς ψυχάς ἀγαπῶντες τάς ἑαυτῶν, ἀνάξιοι τοῦ τοιούτου δώρου γίνονται καί εἰς ζωήν αἰώνιον, ἔτι ὄντες ἐν σώματι, οὐκ εἰσέρχονται· εἰ δέ μή νῦν, οὐδέ μετά τήν τοῦ σώματος ἔξοδον εἰσελεύσονται δηλονότι. Εἰ γάρ ὁ τό ἕν τάλαντον λαβών καί κατακρύψας κατεκρίθη, ὅτι μή ἐπολυπλασίασεν αὐτό, πόσῳ μᾶλλον ὁ μηδέ φυλάξας ὅ ἔλαβεν, ἀλλά διά ῥᾳθυμίας ἀπολέσας, κατακριθήσεται.

Ἐνταῦθα τοιγαροῦν, ὡς πᾶσα Γραφή θεόπνευστος λέγει, ἐστίν ἡ πανήγυρις, ἐνταῦθα τά σκάμματα, καί ἐνταῦθα τοῖς νικῶσι τῶν ἐπάθλων οἱ ἀρραβωνικοί στέφανοι δίδονται, καί τοῖς ἡττηθεῖσι πρόδηλος καί φανερά ἡ ἀπαρχή τῆς αἰσχύνης καί τῆς κολάσεως γίνεται. Καί ὅρα τῷ λόγῳ συμμαρτυροῦντας τούτῳ τούς τε ἁγίους Τεσσαράκοντα Μάρτυρας καί πάντας ἄλλους τούς ὑπέρ Χριστοῦ μαρτυρήσαντας. Οἱ μέν γάρ ἐν αὐτῇ τῇ λίμνῃ ὄντες τοῦ ὕδατος ἐκ χειρός Θεοῦ τούς στεφάνους ἐδέξαντο, ὁ δέ τῷ λουτρῷ προσφυγών τῇ θέρμῃ εὐθύς διελύθη καί πρός τό αἰώνιον πῦρ ἀπελήλυθεν. Εὐστράτιος δέ ὁ ἐπ᾿ ἀρετῇ περιβόητος, ὑπέρ Χριστοῦ τιμωρούμενος, «Νῦν ἔγνων» ἔλεγεν «ὅτι ναός Θεοῦ εἰμι καί τό Πνεῦμα αὐτοῦ οἰκεῖ ἐν ἐμοί. Ἀπόστητε ἀπ᾿ἐμοῦ πάντες οἱ ἐργάται τῆς ἀνομίας». Πρός δέ τόν δικάζοντα τύραννον ἀπεφθέγγετο· «Εἴ σοι τά αἰσθητήρια τῶν φρενῶν μή ἀλλοίωτο καί τῷ τῶν παθῶν φυράματι μή μετεσκεύαστο πρός τό γεῶδες ἡ ψυχή σου, ἔδειξα ἄν σοι τόν ἐσταυρωμένον τοῦτον σωτῆρα καί λυτρωτήν καί εὐεργέτην τυγχάνοντα». (309) Εἶδες πῶς ἡ πίστις δίχα τῶν ἔργων νεκρά ἐστι; Πρό γάρ τοῦ εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τούς τοῦ μαρτυρίου ἀγῶνας τόν ἅγιον, ἐπειδή τήν πίστιν μόνην εἶχεν, οὐκ εἶχε τό Πνεῦμα τό Ἅγιον ἐν ἑαυτῷ, ὅτε δέ ἐκ τῶν ἔργων τήν πίστιν ἔδειξε, τότε καί ναόν ἑαυτόν Θεοῦ ἐπέγνω καί τό Πνεῦμα αὐτοῦ τό Ἅγιον οἰκοῦν ἐν ἑαυτῷ γνωστῶς τοῖς νοεροῖς ὄμμασιν ἐθεάσατο. Τί ταύτης τῆς μαρτυρίας ἐκδηλότερον γένοιτ᾿ ἄν;

Εἰ δέ λέγοιέν τινες ὅτι ἐκεῖνοι μάρτυρες ἦσαν, ἐκεῖνοι ἔπασχον ὑπέρ τοῦ Χριστοῦ, καί πῶς ἐκείνοις ἴσους ἡμᾶς γενέσθαι ἐνδέχεται, τοῦτο πρός αὐτούς εἴποιμεν ὅτι καί ὑμεῖς αὐτοί, εἴ γε βούλεσθε, ὑπέρ Χριστοῦ πάσχοντες καί τιμωρούμενοι, καθάπερ ἐκεῖνοι μαρτυρήσετε καθ᾿ ἑκάστην, οὐκ ἐν ἡμέρᾳ μόνον, ἀλλά καί ἐν νυκτί καί ἐν πάσῃ ὥρᾳ. Καί πῶς ἔσται τοῦτο; Ἐάν καί ὑμεῖς πρός τούς