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“From the earth,” he says, “the first, because he was created of dust, but the second man, the Lord of all, came down from heaven.” The first brought forth death for all men and corruption through the transgression; but the second bestowed on the world, and now also provides to all the faithful, light, life, and incorruptibility. Have you heard what the mystagogue of heavenly things says to you? Have you heard Christ speaking through him and teaching men what sort of people those who have believed in him and demonstrate their faith by their works become? Do not doubt, therefore, any longer. If you are a Christian, as Christ is heavenly, so you also ought to be. But not being so, (334) how will you be called a Christian? For if such as the Lord is heavenly, he also says that those who have believed in him are certainly heavenly, all who mind worldly things, all who live according to the flesh, are not of the Word of God who came down from above, but certainly of the man of dust who was formed from the earth. Think thus, hold thus, believe thus, and seek to become such a heavenly person, as he said who came from heaven and gives life to the world. This is also the bread, which comes down from there, which those who eat never see death at all; for being heavenly
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Ἐκ τῆς γῆς, φησίν, ὁ πρῶτος, ὅτι χοϊκός ἐκτίσθη, ὁ δεύτερος ἄνθρωπος δέ, τῶν ἁπάντων ὁ ∆εσπότης, ἐκ τῶν οὐρανῶν κατῆλθε. Θάνατον πᾶσιν ὁ πρῶτος προεξένησεν ἀνθρώποις καί φθοράν τῇ παραβάσει˙ ὁ δέ δεύτερος τῷ κόσμῳ ἐδωρήσατο καί νῦν δέ ἅπασι πιστοῖς παρέχει φῶς, ζωήν καί ἀφθαρσίαν. Ἤκουσας, ἅπερ σοι λέγει ὁ τῶν οὐρανίων μύστης; ἤκουσας Χριστοῦ λαλοῦντος δι᾿ αὐτοῦ καί τούς ἀνθρώπους ἐκδιδάσκοντος ὁποῖοι οἱ αὐτῷ πεπιστευκότες καί τήν πίστιν ἐκ τῶν ἔργων ἐνδεικνύμενοι τελοῦσι; Μή οὖν ἀμφίβαλλε λοιπόν˙ εἰ Χριστιανός ὑπάρχεις, οἷος ὁ Χριστός ὑπάρχει ἐπουράνιος, τοιοῦτος καί αὐτός ὀφείλεις εἶναι˙ μή ὑπάρχων δέ τοιοῦτος, (334) πῶς Χριστιανός κληθήσῃ; Εἰ γάρ οἷος ὁ ∆εσπότης ἐπουράνιος ὑπάρχει, καί τοιούτους εἶναι λέγει τούς αὐτῷ πεπιστευκότας πάντως γε ἐπουρανίους, ὅσοι κοσμικά φρονοῦσι, ὅσοι κατά σάκρα ζῶσιν, οὐκ εἰσί τοῦ ἐκ τῶν ἄνω κατελθόντος Θεοῦ Λόγου, ἀλλά τοῦ ἐκ γῆς πλασθέντος χοϊκοῦ ἀνθρώπου πάντως. Οὕτω φρόνει, οὕτως ἔχε, οὕτω πίστευε, καί ζήτει ἵνα γένησαι τοιοῦτος ἐπουράνιος, ὡς εἶπεν ὁ ἐξ οὐρανῶν φοιτήσας καίδιδούς ζωήν τῷ κόσμῳ. Οὗτος ἔστι καί ὁ ἄρτος, ὁ ἐκεῖθεν καταβαίνων, ὅν οἱ τρώγοντες οὐδ᾿ ὅλως \ θάνατόν ποτε ὁρῶσιν˙ ἐπουράνιοι γάρ ὄντες