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it will happen, but if he is unwilling it will by no means be. No one unwilling has achieved virtue in the world, no one unwilling is saved; seek nothing more than this, but strive to save yourself and those who hear you, if you should find on earth a person having ears to hear and listening to your words. Thus I will do, Master, as you have commanded me, but your help, but your grace grant to me, your unworthy servant, O my God, that I may always glorify you and praise your might with unceasing voices unto ages of ages, amen.
Μ∆'.
What is "according to the image," and how man is reasonably understood as an image of the prototype; and that he who loves his enemies as benefactors is an imitator of God, and having hence become a partaker of the Holy Spirit, becomes god by position and by grace, being known only to those who are activated by the Holy Spirit. (324)
Glory, praise, hymn, thanks to the God of all, who brought all creation out of non-being into being by word alone and his own will, in a Trinity of hypostases, and one, unseparated and undivided, there is one nature, one glory, one power, and one will likewise. This alone is the creation of all things, this fashioned me whole from clay, and having given a soul (325) placed me upon the earth, has given the light both to see and to behold in it this entire sensible world, the sun, I say, the moon, the stars and heaven, earth and sea and all the things that are between them. It has given, both mind and reason; but pay attention to the word! Therefore, according to the image of the Word, the word was given to us; for we are rational from the unoriginate, uncreated Word,
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γενήσεται, μή θέλων δέ οὐδαμῶς τοῦτο ἔσται. Οὐδείς μή θέλων ἀρετήν κατώρθωσεν ἐν κόσμῳ, οὐδείς μή θέλων σῴζεται˙ πλέον τούτου μή ζήτει, σπούδασον σῶσαι δέ σαὐτόν καί τούς ἀκούοντάς σου, εἰ ἄρα εὕροις ἐπί γῆς ἄνθρωπον τοῦ ἀκούειν ἔχοντα ὦτα καί τῶν σῶν ἐπακούοντα λόγων. Οὕτως ποιήσω, ∆έσποτα, καθώς προσέταξάς μοι, ἀλλά τήν σήν βοήθειαν, ἀλλά τήν σήν μοι χάριν τῷ ἀναξίῳ δώρησαι δούλῳ σου, ὦ Θεέ μου, ἵνα ἀεί δοξάζω σε καί ἀνυμνῶ σόν κράτος ἀκαταπαύστοις ἐν φωναῖς εἰς αἰῶνας αἰώνων, ἀμήν.
Μ∆'.
Τί ἐστι τό κατ᾿ εἰκόνα, καί πῶς εἰκότως νοεῖται ὡς τοῦ πρωτοτύπου εἰκών ὁ ἄνθρωπος˙ καί ὅτι ὁ τούς ἐχθρούς ὡς εὐεργέτας φιλῶν μιμητής ἐστι τοῦ Θεοῦ, Πνεύματος δέ Ἁγίου ἐντεῦθεν μέτοχος γεγονώς θέσει θεός καί χάριτι γίνεται, μόνοις ἐκείνοις γνωριζόμενος, τοῖς ὑπό τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος ἐνεργουμένοις. (324)
∆όξα, αἶνος, ὕμνος, χάρις τῷ τήν κτίσιν ἐξ οὐκ ὄντων εἰς τό εἶναι λόγῳ μόνῳ καί θελήματι οἰκείῳ ἅπασαν παραγαγόντι Θεῷ πάντων, ἐν Τριάδι ὑποστάσεων, μιᾷ τε ἀχωρίστοις καί ἀτμήτοις, μία φύσις, μία δόξα, μία δύναμις ὑπάρχει, θέλημά τε ἕν ὡσαύτως. Αὕτη μόνη κτίσις πάντων, αὕτη ἐκ πηλοῦ με ὅλον πλάσασα, ψυχήν τε δοῦσα (325) ἔθηκεν ἐπί τῆς γῆς με, δέδωκε τό φῶς τε βλέπειν καί ὁρᾶν ἐν τούτῳ πάντα τόνδε τόν αἰσθητόν κόσμον, ἥλιον, σελήνην λέγω, τούς ἀστέρας οὐρανόν τε, γῆν καί θάλασσαν καί πάντα τά ἐν μέσῳ τούτων ὄντα. ∆έδωκε, καί νοῦν καί λόγον˙ ἀλλά πρόσεχε τῷ λόγῳ! Κατ᾿ εἰκόνα οὖν τοῦ Λόγου δέδοται ἡμῖν ὁ λόγος˙ λογικοί γάρ ἐκ τοῦ Λόγου τοῦ ἀνάρχου, τοῦ ἀκτίστου,