148

leading him back from slavery and impiety to freedom and piety, from injustice to righteousness, from eternal death to everlasting life. Let the one who is approaching learn these things and the things that follow them in the catechism. Let the one laying hands on him worship God, the master of all, giving thanks for His creation, that He sent down His only-begotten Son Christ, in order to save man by wiping out his iniquities, and in order to forgive impieties and sins and to cleanse from every defilement of flesh and spirit, and to sanctify man according to the good pleasure of His goodness, and to make him understand His will, and to enlighten the eyes of his heart to the understanding of His wonders, to make known to him the judgments of righteousness, so that he might hate every way of injustice, and walk in the way of truth so as to be counted worthy of the bath of regeneration for adoption in Christ; that having been united in the likeness of the death of Christ in the hope of the glorious communion he might be dead to sin, but live to God in mind and word and deed, and be numbered in the book of the living. And after this thanksgiving, let him teach him the things concerning the Lord's incarnation, and concerning His passion and resurrection from the dead and ascension. And when the catechumen is finally about to be baptized, let him learn the things concerning the renunciation of the devil and the things concerning the covenant with Christ; for it is necessary for him first to abstain from contrary things and then to enter into the mysteries, having first cleansed his heart from all evil intent, stain, and wrinkle, and then to partake of the holy things. For as an excellent farmer first clears the field of the thorns that grow up in it and then sows the wheat, so also must you, having first removed all impiety from them, then implant piety in them and deem them worthy of baptism. For our Lord also exhorted us in this way, saying: "First make disciples of all nations," and then He added, "And baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." Therefore, let the one being baptized declare in his renunciation: I renounce Satan and his works and his pomps and his services and his

148

τῆς δουλείας καὶ ἀσεβείας εἰς ἐλευθερίαν καὶ εὐσέβειαν ἐπανάγων, ἀπὸ ἀδικίας εἰς δικαιοσύνην, ἀπὸ θανάτου αἰωνίου εἰς ζωὴν ἀΐδιον. Ταῦτα καὶ τὰ τὰ τούτοις ἀκόλουθα μανθανέτω ἐν τῇ κατηχήσει ὁ προσιών. Προσκυνείτω δὲ ὁ χειροθετῶν αὐτὸν τὸν Θεὸν τὸν τῶν ὅλων δεσπότην, εὐχαριστῶν ὑπὲρ τοῦ πλάσματος, ὅτι κατέπεμψεν τὸν Υἱὸν αὐτοῦ τὸν μονογενῆ Χριστόν, ἵνα σώσῃ τὸν ἄνθρωπον ἐξαλείψας τὰς ἀνομίας, καὶ ἵνα ἀφῇ τὰς ἀσεβείας καὶ τὰς ἁμαρτίας καὶ καθαρίσῃ ἀπὸ παντὸς μολυσμοῦ σαρκὸς καὶ πνεύματος, ἁγιάσῃ δὲ τὸν ἄνθρωπον κατ' εὐδοκίαν τῆς χρηστότητος αὐτοῦ, συνετίσῃ δὲ τὸ θέλημα αὐτοῦ, καὶ φωτίσῃ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς τῆς καρδίας αὐτοῦ εἰς κατανόησιν τῶν θαυμασίων αὐτοῦ, γνω ρίσῃ αὐτῷ τὰ κρίματα τῆς δικαιοσύνης, ὅπως ἂν μισήσῃ πᾶσαν ὁδὸν ἀδικίας, πορεύηται δὲ τὴν ὁδὸν τῆς ἀληθείας εἰς τὸ καταξιωθῆναι αὐτὸν τοῦ λουτροῦ τῆς παλιγγενεσίας εἰς υἱοθεσίαν τὴν ἐν Χριστῷ· ἵνα σύμφυτος γενόμενος ἐν τῇ ὁμοιότητι τοῦ θανάτου τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐπ' ἐλπίδι τῆς ἐνδόξου κοινωνίας νεκρωθῇ μὲν τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ, ζήσῃ δὲ τῷ Θεῷ κατά τε νοῦν καὶ λόγον καὶ πρᾶξιν, καὶ ἐν τῇ βίβλῳ τῶν ζώντων συναριθμηθῇ. Καὶ μετὰ τὴν εὐχαριστίαν ταύτην παιδευσάτω αὐτὸν τὰ περὶ τῆς τοῦ Κυρίου ἐνανθρω πήσεως, τά τε περὶ τοῦ πάθους αὐτοῦ καὶ τῆς ἐκ νεκρῶν ἀναστάσεως καὶ ἀναλήψεως. Καὶ ὅταν ᾖ πρὸς αὐτὸ λοιπὸν τὸ βαπτισθῆναι ὁ κατηχηθείς, μανθανέτω τὰ περὶ τῆς ἀποταγῆς τοῦ διαβόλου καὶ τὰ περὶ τῆς συνταγῆς τοῦ Χριστοῦ· δεῖ γὰρ αὐτὸν πρῶτον μὲν ἀποσχέσθαι τῶν ἐναντίων καὶ τότε ἐντὸς γενέσθαι τῶν μυστηρίων, προκαθάραντα ἑαυτοῦ τὴν καρδίαν πάσης κακονοίας σπίλου τε καὶ ·υτίδος καὶ τότε τῶν ἁγίων μεταλαχεῖν. Ὡς γὰρ γεωργὸς ἄριστος ἐκκαθαίρει τὴν ἄρουραν πρότερον τῶν ὑπερφυουσῶν ἐν αὐτῇ ἀκανθῶν καὶ τότε σπείρει τὸν πυρόν, οὕτως δεῖ καὶ ὑμᾶς, πρότερον πᾶσαν ἀσέβειαν ἐξελόντας ἀπ' αὐτῶν, τότε τὴν εὐσέβειαν αὐτοῖς ἐγκαταβάλλεσθαι καὶ τοῦ βαπτίσματος ἀξιῶσαι. Καὶ γὰρ καὶ ὁ Κύριος ἡμῶν οὕτως ἡμῖν παρῄνεσεν εἰπών· «Μαθητεύσατε πρότερον πάντα τὰ ἔθνη», καὶ τότε ἐπήγαγεν τὸ «Καὶ βαπτίσατε αὐτοὺς εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ Πατρὸς καὶ τοῦ Υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος.» Ἀπαγγελλέτω οὖν ὁ βαπτιζόμενος ἐν τῷ ἀποτάσ σεσθαι· Ἀποτάσσομαι τῷ σατανᾷ καὶ τοῖς ἔργοις αὐτοῦ καὶ ταῖς πομπαῖς αὐτοῦ καὶ ταῖς λατρείαις αὐτοῦ καὶ τοῖς