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is the one who urges his own soul to bless the Lord. And those who say the soul is of the spirit do not say this as if it were dust but as being under it and under its care. And he calls all the rational power of man his "inward parts." For thus we must also hear the Savior saying to some, "The kingdom of heaven is within you." And thus consider the "inward parts" according to another meaning: when we have our powers at rest, by which we are able to act well, they are said to be within us. Therefore it is necessary to stir these up and turn them toward actions through which we bless the name of the Lord. For no one blesses the holy name by having powers but by good actions. Indeed the Savior also said to those who partook of the power of virtue and divine knowledge, "The kingdom of God is within you," as if to say: You have within yourselves the starting points of the faith and virtue I seek from you, being rational and made in the image of God; therefore do not seek the good outside of yourselves. 978 Ps 102,3b-5 The diseases of the soul are sins. For he says, "heal my soul, for I have sinned against you." And he redeems life from corruption, so that you may no longer live a corrupt and passionate life but in incorruption, loving the Lord Jesus. And providing you an incorruptible human body in the resurrection, he redeems your life from corruption. And he crowns you with mercy and compassion, the material of this crown being mercy and compassion. For as others receive the crown of righteousness and the unfading crown of glory woven from righteousness and right glory, so you too are crowned from the mercy and compassion which you have worked, according to "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy." Or thus, which is better: you are crowned not so much for the brave deeds you performed in the struggle, as because you are shown mercy and compassion by the Lord, with the Lord binding your spiritual head with the crown of graces. For as we are saved by the grace of God and not by our own works, and the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us, so also he crowns us, not looking to our struggle but to his own mercy and compassion. And he fills your desire with good things. For he is one who gives good things to those who ask him. Since, therefore, the very desiring of good things is to ask for them, by giving you all that you long for, he fills your desire with good things; for every desire of the righteous one is good. And since you were made in the image and likeness of God and at the same time as you came into being you were prepared for the good, but through carelessness you shed your feathers and cast off virtue, both practical and intellectual, by which you were raised up and ascended on high, know that you have the power to grow feathers, if you should wish and be helped by God. And this will happen for you, with your youth being renewed like the eagle's. For as this bird, when it grows old, plucks out its feathers, so that new feathers may grow again, so you too, having grown old in wickedness, be renewed in the recovery of your antiquity and your youth, so that, using now what you once used when they were strong, you may be raised aloft to heaven towards all those who with you have waited for God; "For those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall grow feathers like eagles, they shall run and be weary." 979 Ps 102,6 Being the Father of compassion and alone good, the Lord performs acts of mercy, showing mercy and beneficence to all; wherefore also executing judgment for those wronged by the devil and wickedness, he sent his own son to heal and free those oppressed by Satan, redeeming their souls from usury and from injustice, taking up the certificate of debt against us and nailing it to the cross. The one who held it, the devil, had us as debtors, since we, by what we did, composed for him the certificate of debt against us. Therefore we were delivered from all the injustice against

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ἐστιν ὁ παρορμῶν τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ψυχὴν ἐπὶ τῷ εὐλογεῖν τὸν κύριον. καὶ οἱ τὴν ψυχὴν δὲ λέγοντες ειναι τοῦ πνεύματος οὐχ ὡς χοῦν αὐτό φασιν ἀλλ' ὡς ὑπ' αὐτὸ καὶ τὴν αὐτοῦ κηδεμονίαν τυγχάνουσαν. ̓Εντὸς δὲ αὐτοῦ καλεῖ πᾶσαν τὴν λογικὴν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου δύναμιν. ουτω γὰρ ἀκουστέον καὶ τοῦ σωτῆρος λέγοντός τισιν ̔Η βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν ἐντὸς ὑμῶν ἐστι. καὶ ουτω θεώρησον τὰ ἐντὸς κατὰ διάνοιαν αλλην· οταν τὰς δυνάμεις εχωμεν ἡσυχαζούσας, ων δυνάμεθα ἐνεργῆσαι καλῶς ἐντὸς ἡμῶν ειναι λέγονται. δεῖ ουν ἀνακινῆσαι ταύτας καὶ τρέψαι πρὸς ἐνεργείας δι' ων εὐλογοῦμεν τὸ ονομα κυρίου. οὐδεὶς γὰρ τῷ δυνάμεις εχειν ἀλλ' ἐνεργείας ἀγαθὰς εὐλογεῖ τὸ αγιον ονομα. ἀμέλει καὶ ὁ σωτὴρ τοῖς δύναμιν ἀρετῆς καὶ γνώσεως θείας μεταλαβοῦσιν εφη ̔Η βασιλεία τοῦ θεοῦ ἐντὸς ὑμῶν ἐστι, μονονουχὶ λέγων· Ης ζητῶ παρ' ὑμῶν πίστεως καὶ ἀρετῆς τὰς ἀφορμὰς ἐν ἑαυτοῖς εχετε, λογικοὶ καὶ κατ' εἰκόνα θεοῦ γεγενημένοι· οθεν μὴ εξω ἑαυτῶν ζητεῖτε τὸ ἀγαθόν. 978 Ps 102,3b-5 Νόσοι ψυχῆς αἱ ἁμαρτίαι. ιασαι γάρ φησι τὴν ψυχήν μου οτι ημαρτόν σοι. Λυτροῦται δὲ ζωὴν ἐκ φθορᾶς, ινα μηκέτι κατὰ φθορὰν καὶ ἐμπαθῆ ζῇς ζωὴν ἀλλ' ἐν ἀφθαρσίᾳ ἀγαπῶν τὸν κύριον ̓Ιησοῦν. καὶ αφθαρτον δὲ ἀνθρώπου παρέχων σοι σῶμα ἐν τῇ ἀναστάσει λυτροῦται ἐκ φθορᾶς τὴν ζωήν σου. Στεφανοῖ δέ σε καὶ ἐν ἐλέει καὶ οἰκτιρμοῖς, τῆς υλης τοῦ στεφάνου τούτου ἐλεημοσύνης καὶ οἰκτιρμοῦ τυγχανούσης. ὡς γὰρ αλλοι τὸν τῆς δικαιοσύνης στέφανον καὶ τὸν ἀμαράντινον στέφανον τῆς δόξης δέχονται ἐκ δικαιοσύνης καὶ δόξης ὀρθῆς πεπλεγμένον, ουτω καὶ σὺ ἐξ ἐλέου καὶ οἰκτιρμοῦ ων εἰργάσω στεφανοῦσαι κατὰ τὸ Μακάριοι οἱ ἐλεήμονες, οτι αὐτοὶ ἐλεηθήσονται. η καὶ ουτως οπερ βέλτιον· οὐ τοσοῦτον δι' α ἠνδραγαθήσω ἐν τῷ ἀγωνίζεσθαι, οσον διὰ τὸ ἐλεεῖσθαί σε καὶ οἰκτείρεσθαι ὑπὸ κυρίου στεφανοῦσαι, ἀναδοῦντος τοῦ κυρίου τῷ στεφάνῳ τῶν χαρίτων τὴν νοητὴν κεφαλήν σου. ὡς γὰρ χάριτι θεοῦ καὶ οὐκ ἐξ ἡμετέρων εργων σῳζόμεθα καὶ οὐκ αξια εχομεν παθήματα ἐν τῷ νῦν καιρῷ πρὸς τὴν μέλλουσαν ἀποκαλυφθῆναι δόξαν ἡμῖν, ουτω καὶ στεφανοῖ ἡμᾶς οὐ πρὸς τὴν ἡμετέραν σκοπῶν αθλησιν ἀλλὰ πρὸς τὸν ἑαυτοῦ ελεον καὶ οἰκτιρμόν. ̓Εμπίπλησι δὲ καὶ ἐν ἀγαθοῖς τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν σου. διδοὺς γὰρ ἀγαθὰ τοῖς αἰτοῦσιν αὐτόν ἐστιν. ἐπεὶ ουν καὶ αὐτὸ τὸ ἐπιθυμεῖν τῶν ἀγαθῶν αἰτεῖσθαι αὐτὰ τυγχάνει, διδούς σοι πάντα ων ὀρέγῃ ἐμπιπλᾷ ἐν ἀγαθοῖς τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν σου· τοῦ γὰρ δικαίου πᾶσα ἐπιθυμία ἀγαθή ἐστι. Καὶ ἐπεὶ κατ' εἰκόνα καὶ ὁμοίωσιν θεοῦ γινομένη καὶ αμα τῷ εἰς οὐσίαν ἐλθεῖν ἐν προχρείᾳ τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ γέγονας, ἐξ ἀπροσεξίας δὲ πτερορρυήσασα ἀπέβαλες τὴν ἀρετὴν πρακτικήν τε καὶ διανοητικὴν ουσαν δι' ης μετεωριζομένη εἰς υψος ἀνήρχου, ισθι οτι εχεις δύναμιν τοῦ πτεροφυεῖσθαι, εἰ βουληθείης καὶ συνεργηθείης θεόθεν. καὶ εσται σοι τοῦτο, ἀνακαινιζομένης σου τῆς νεότητος κατὰ τὸν ἀετόν. ὡς γὰρ τὸ ορνεον τοῦτο γηράσαν ἀποτιλλοῦται, ιν' αυθις νέα πτερὰ φύσῃ, ουτω καὶ σὺ γηράσασα τῇ κακίᾳ ἀνανεώθητι τῆς ἀρχαιότητος καὶ τῆς νεότητός σου ἐν ἀπολήσει γινομένη, ιν' οις ποτε ἐχρῶ ἰσχυροῖς ουσι καὶ νῦν χρωμένη μετέωρος εἰς οὐρανὸν ἀρθῇς πρὸς πάντας τοὺς αμα σοι τὸν θεὸν ὑπομεμενηκότας· Οἱ γὰρ ὑπομένοντες τὸν κύριον ἀλλάξουσιν ἰσχύν, πτεροφυήσουσιν ὡς ἀετοί, δραμοῦνται καὶ κοπιάσουσιν. 979 Ps 102,6 Πατὴρ οἰκτιρμῶν καὶ μόνος ἀγαθὸς ων ὁ κύριος ἐλεημοσύνας ποιεῖ, πάντας ἐλεῶν εὐεργετῶν· οθεν καὶ τοῖς ἀδικουμένοις ὑπὸ διαβόλου καὶ τῆς κακίας ποιῶν κρίμα, τὸν ιδιον υἱὸν ἐπέπεμψεν ἐπὶ τῷ ἰάσασθαι καὶ ἐλευθερῶσαι τοὺς καταδυναστευομένους ὑπὸ τοῦ Σατανᾶ ἐκ τόκου καὶ ἐξ ἀδικίας λυτρούμενον τὰς ψυχὰς αὐτῶν, αρας τὸ καθ' ἡμῶν χειρόγραφον καὶ προσηλώσας τῷ σταυρῷ. ὁ κατέχων, ὁ διάβολος, ὑποχρέους ειχεν ἡμᾶς, ἡμῶν δι' ων ἐπράττομεν συστησάντων αὐτῷ τὸ καθ' ἡμῶν χειρόγραφον. ἐρρύσθημεν ουν ἀπὸ πάσης ἀδικίας τῆς καθ'