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30. By the same to John the Bishop. Those who have rationally considered the nature of existing things say, that the power of fire is attractive of all its subject matter; to which the interpreters of the divine mysteries, symbolically comparing God, say that He too is attractive of all who wish to obey His laws, and who endure to embrace a holy life; to whom, saying that the priesthood exists as a painting in an image, skillfully holding the imitation, and it too, by the same law according to the grace of sympathy, they declare to be attractive of all who are under the same nature. Since you too, holy Father, have been allotted to have this image of God on earth, call to yourself, by ways and words of sympathy, those who long to return to you, and who desire according to their prayers to be shepherded by you; and confirm by true promises through your precious letters, your providence for them in all things, with God; if indeed the foul expectation of the enemies has completely failed; because of which they endured so great an exile, they who considered it safe to follow the law of God, which clearly cries out: 'If they persecute you in this city, flee to another'; and who preferred praiseworthy cowardice to boldness; so that, after God, trusting in your words, they may make their return without fear; and from the toils which for the sake of virtue, and of obeying God who commands to flee the persecutors, they have been hard-pressed during this dreadful sojourn, they may find relief, your merciful arrangement for them in all things. Do not, therefore, holy Father, disdain to receive your suppliant and servant who beseeches you; but honor with your own letters, as you are honorable, one who is worthy of no honor; and through your prayers commend me to Christ, the only honorable one, who has preciously honored dishonored man through Himself; Whom, as Master and Lord, you imitate in all things, you have made yourself another Him, according to the grace of the Spirit, for those who see you.

31. By the same to the same. Just as a ray gently draws to itself healthy (625) sight which by nature rejoices in light, and imparts its own brightness; so too the true priesthood, being a character in all things of the blessed divinity for those on earth, draws to itself every soul that is God-loving and divine in its disposition, and imparts its own knowledge, and peace, and love; so that, bringing each power of the soul to the end of its proper activity, it may present to God those initiated by it, deified through all things. For the end of the rational activity of the soul is true knowledge; of the desiderative, love; and of the irascible, peace; just as also of the true priesthood, to be deified and to deify through these. For it is for this that we naturally have reason, to seek God, and we received desire to long for Him alone, and we were furnished with the irascible part only to strive for Him. And the end of seeking is true knowledge; of longing, continuous and ardent love; and of the divine struggles, the peace which surpasses all understanding.

Knowing that you, the all-holy and all-blessed, are the makers and teachers of these highest goods, the true handmaid of God, and daughter and mother, Eudocia the recluse, with her sacred flock, has returned to you, having shown you, the God-honored, to be victors over all those who strove to have her for themselves. For she is truly a handmaid, as a fulfiller of the divine commandments; and a daughter, as having through all things, according to her disposition, an unvarying resemblance to God

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Λ´Τοῦ αὐτοῦ πρός Ἰωάννην ἐπίσκοπον. Φασίν οἱ τήν τῶν ὄντων φύσιν λογικῶς διασκεψάμενοι, παντός ἑλκτικήν εἶναι τοῦ

ὑποκειμένου τήν τοῦ πυρός δύναμιν· ᾧ παραβάλοντες συμβολικῶς τόν Θεόν, οἱ τῶν θείων ἐξηγηταί μυστηρίων, ἑλκτικόν καί αὐτόν εἶναί φασιν πάντων τῶν βουλεμένων τοῖς αὐτοῦ πείθεσθαι νόμοις, καί τό ζῇν ὁσίως ἀνεχομένων ἀσπάζεσθαι· πρός ὅν, ὥσπερ ἐν εἰκόνι γραφήν εὐφυῶς τήν μίμησιν ἔχουσαν ὑπάρχειν λέγοντες τήν ἱερωσύνην, καί αὐτήν τῷ ἴσῳ κατά τήν χάριν συμπαθείας νόμῳ, πάντων ἑλκτικήν εἶναι τῶν ὑπό τήν αὐτήν φύσιν διαγορεύουσι. Ταύτην οὖν καί αὐτός, ἅγιε Πάτερ, ἐπί γῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ εἰκόνα ἔχειν λαχών, κάλεσον πρός ἑαυτόν συμπαθείας τρόποις καί λόγοις, τούς πρός σέ ποθοῦντας ἐπανελθεῖν, καί ὑπό σοῦ ποιμανθῆναι κατ᾿ εὐχάς ἐπιθυμοῦντας· καί πίστωσον ἐπαγγελίαις ἀληθέσι διά συλλαβῶν σου τιμίων, τήν εἰς αὐτούς σύν Θεῷ περί πάντα σου πρόνοιαν· εἴπερ παντελῶς ἡ τῶν ἐχθρῶν δυσώδης ἀπεγένετο προσδοκία· δι᾿ ἥν τοσαύτην ὑπέμειναν φυγήν, οἱ τῷ νόμῳ τοῦ Θεοῦ κατακολουθεῖν ἀσφαλές ἡγησάμενοι, τῷ διαῤῥῄδην βοῶντι· Ἐάν διώκωσιν ὑμᾶς ἐκ τῆς πόλεως ταύτης, φεύγετε εἰς τήν ἄλλην· καί τήν ἐπαινετήν δειλίαν τοῦ θράσους προκρίναντες· ἵνα μετά Θεόν τοῖς σοῖς πιστεύοντες λόγοις, ἀφόβως ποιήσωνται τήν ἐπάνοδον· καί τῶν πόνων οἷς ὑπέρ ἀρετῆς, καί τοῦ πεισθῆναι Θεῷ τούς διώκοντας φεύγειν κελεύοντι, κατά τήν φοβεράν ταύτην ξενιτείαν, ὑπεπιάσθησαν, ἄνεσιν εὕρωσιν, ἐλεήμονα τήν σήν περί αὐτούς κατά πάντα συγκρότησιν. Μή τοίνυν ἀπαξιώσῃς, ἅγιε Πάτερ, τόν σόν ἱκέτην καί δοῦλον παρακαλοῦντα προσδέξασθαι· ἀλλά τίμησον οἰκείαις συλλαβαῖς, ὡς τίμιος, τόν μηδεμιᾶς τιμῆς ἄξιον· καί δι᾿ εὐχῶν παράθου τῷ Χριστῷ τῷ μόνῳ τιμίῳ, καί τόν ἄτιμον πολυτίμως δι᾿ ἑαυτοῦ τιμήσαντι ἄνθρωπον· ὅντινα ∆εσπότην καί Κύριον κατά πάντα μιμούμενος, ἄλλον ἐκεῖνον κατά χάριν τοῦ Πνεύματος σεαυτόν τοῖς ὁρῶσι κατέστησας.

ΛΑ´Τοῦ αὐτοῦ πρός τόν αὐτόν. Ὥσπερ ἀκτίς ἐπισπᾶται προσηνῶς τήν ὑγιαίνουσαν (625) ὄψιν κατά φύσιν

προσχαίρουσαν φωτί, καί τῆς οἰκείας λαμπρότητος μεταδίδωσι οὕτως καί ἡ ἀληθής ἱερωσύνη χαρακτήρ οὖσα δά πάντων τῆς μακαρίας θεότητος τοῖς ἐπί γῆς, πᾶσαν ψυχήν κατά τήν ἕξιν φιλόθεόν τε καί θείαν ἐφέλκεται πρός ἑαυτήν, καί τῆς ἰδίας μεταδίδωσι γνώσεως, εἰρήνης τε καί ἀγάπης· ἵνα πρός τό πέρας τῆς οἰκείας ἐνεργείας, ἑκάστην τῆς ψυχῆς ἐνέγκασα δύναμιν, Θεῷ παραστήσῃ διά πάντων θεωθέντας τούς ὑπ᾿ αὐτῆς μυσταγωγουμένους. Τέλος γάρ τῆς κατά ψυχήν λογικῆς ἐνεργείας, ἡ ἀληθής γνῶσίς ἐστι· τῆς ἐπιθυμητικῆς δέ, ἡ ἀγάπη· τῆς δέ θυμικῆς, ἡ εἰρήνη· ὥσπερ καί τῆς ἀληθοῦς ἱερωσύνης, τό διά τούτων θεοποιεῖσθαί τε καί θεοποιεῖν. Ἐφ᾿ ᾧ γάρ ζητεῖν τόν Θεόν ἔχομεν φυσικῶς τό λογίζεσθαι, καί αὐτόν μόνον ποθεῖν τήν ἐπιθυμίαν ἐλάβομεν, καί ὑπέρ αὐτοῦ ἀγωνίζεσθαι μόνον τόν θυμόν ἐκομισάμεθα. Τέλος δέ τῆς μέν ζητήσεως, ἡ ἀληθής γνῶσίς ἐστι· τοῦ δέ πόθου, ἡ διηνεκής καί διάπυρος ἀγάπη· τῶν δέ θείων ἀγώνων, ἡ πάντα νοῦν ὑπερέχουσα εἰρήνη.

Τούτων ὄντας τῶν ἄκρων ἀγαθῶν ποιητάς τε καί διδασκάλους τούς παναγίους καί παμμακαρίστους ὑμᾶς γινώσκουσα ἡ ὄντως δούλη τοῦ Θεοῦ, καί θυγάτηρ καί μήτηρ Εὐδοκία ἡ ἐγκλειστή, μετά τῆς ἱερᾶς αὐτῆς ἀγέλης, πρός ὑμᾶς ἐπανῆλθε, νικητάς ἀποδείξασα τούς θεοτιμήτους ὑμᾶς πάντων τῶν πρός ἑαυτούς ἔχειν αὐτήν σπουδασάντων. ∆ούλη γάρ ἀληθῶς ἐστιν, ὡς τῶν θείων ἐντολῶν πληρωτική· θυγάτηρ δέ, ὡς διά πάντων κατά τήν ἕξιν ἀπαράλλακτον ἔχουσα πρός τόν Θεόν τήν ἐμφέρειαν