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59.385 HOMILY 71. And He took His garments, and having sat down again, He said to them: Do you know what I have done to you? and what follows.

1. It is a difficult thing, beloved, a difficult thing to come into the depth of evils. For thenceforth

the soul becomes difficult to correct. For this reason one must do everything, so as not to be caught at the beginning. For it is easier not to fall in, than having fallen in to recover oneself. See at least, after Judas had cast himself in, how much help he receives, and is not even so aroused. He said to him, that One of you is a devil; He said, that Not all believe; He said, that I speak not of all; and, that I know whom I have chosen, and he perceives none of these things. But when He had washed their feet, and taken His garments, and was reclining, He says: Do you know what I have done to you? He is no longer speaking to Peter only, but to all. You call Me, The Lord and the Teacher; and you say well; for so I am. You call me. He accepts their judgment. Then, so that the words might not seem to be a favor from them, He adds: For so I am. So by introducing the saying from them, He makes it immediately inoffensive; and by confirming from Himself what was introduced by them, it is above suspicion. For so I am, He says. Do you see when He speaks to the disciples, how He speaks more openly of Himself? Just as He says, Call no man teacher upon the earth; for one is your Guide; so He says, And call no man father upon the earth. But the, One and One, is not said of the Father only but also of Him. For if He said this excluding Himself, how does He say, that you may become sons of light? And again, if He called the Father only Teacher, how does He say, For so I am? and again, One is your Guide, the Christ? If I then, He says, the Lord and the Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's. For this example I have given you, that as I have done to you, so you also should do. And yet it is not the same. For He is Teacher and Lord, but you are fellow-servants of one another. What then is the, So? With the same eagerness. For it is for this reason that He takes His examples from greater things, that we may at least accomplish the lesser. For indeed teachers write the letters for children with great beauty, so that they might at least attain to the inferior form of imitation. Where now are those who disdain their fellow-servants? where now are those who demand honors? Christ washed the feet of the traitor, the sacrilegious man and thief, and at the very time of the betrayal, and made him who was incurably ill a sharer of His table 59.386; and are you proud and do you raise your eyebrows? Let us therefore wash one another's feet, He says; and so of our servants too. And what great thing is it, if even of our servants? For here slave and free are a difference of names; but there, it is a reality of things. For He was Lord by nature, and we slaves, and not even this did He refuse now to do. But now it is a wonder if we do not use free men as slaves, as slaves bought with silver. And what shall we say then, having received such examples of long-suffering, while we ourselves do not imitate them even a little, but stand in opposition, and are puffed up diametrically, and do not pay our debt? For God has made us debtors to one another, He Himself having begun this, and debtors of a lesser portion. For He was Lord; but we do this to our fellow-servants, if we do it. Which very thing He also intimated by saying: If I then, the Lord and the Teacher; and again, So you also. For the logical thing would have been to say, How much more we who are slaves; but He left it to the conscience of the hearers. Why then has He done this now? They were about to enjoy honor, some more, some less. 2. Therefore, that they might not be exalted against one another, and say these things which they also said before, Who is greater? nor be indignant

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59.385 ΟΜΙΛΙΑ ΟΑʹ. Καὶ ἔλαβε τὰ ἱμάτια αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἀναπεσὼν πά λιν, εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· Γινώσκετε τί πεποίηκα ὑμῖν; καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς.

αʹ. Χαλεπὸν, ἀγαπητοὶ, χαλεπὸν εἰς βάθος κακῶν ἐλθεῖν. Λοιπὸν γὰρ

δυσδιόρθωτος ἡ ψυχὴ γίνεται. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο χρὴ πάντα πράττειν, ὥστε μὴ ἁλῶναι τὴν ἀρχήν. Εὐκολώτερον γὰρ μὴ ἐμπεσεῖν, ἢ ἐμπεσόντα ἀνακτήσασθαι ἑαυτόν. Ὅρα γοῦν, ἐπειδὴ ἐνέβαλεν ἑαυτὸν ὁ Ἰούδας, πόσης ἀπολαύει βοηθείας, καὶ οὐδὲ οὕτω διανίσταται. Εἶπε πρὸς αὐτὸν, ὅτι Εἷς ἐξ ὑμῶν διάβολός ἐστιν· εἶπεν, ὅτι Οὐ πάντες πιστεύουσιν· εἶπεν, ὅτι Οὐ περὶ πάντων λέγω· καὶ, ὅτι Οἶδα ἐγὼ οὓς ἐξελεξάμην, καὶ οὐδενὸς τούτων αἰσθάνεται. Ὡς δὲ ἔνιψε τοὺς πόδας, καὶ ἀνέλαβε τὰ ἱμάτια αὐτοῦ, καὶ κατεκλίθη, φησί· Γινώσκετε τί πεποίηκα ὑμῖν; Οὐκέτι πρὸς Πέτρον μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ πρὸς ἅπαντας διαλέγεται. Ὑμεῖς φωνεῖτέ με, Ὁ Κύριος καὶ ὁ διδάσκαλος· καὶ καλῶς λέγετε· εἰμὶ γάρ. Ὑμεῖς φωνεῖτέ με. Τὴν κρίσιν αὐτῶν προσλαμβάνει. Εἶτα ἵνα μὴ τῆς ἐκείνων χάριτος εἶναι δόξῃ τὰ ῥήματα, ἐπάγει· Εἰμὶ γάρ. Τῷ μὲν οὖν παρ' αὐτῶν τὸν λόγον εἰσαγαγεῖν, εὐθέως ἀνεπαχθῆ ποιεῖ· τῷ δὲ παρ' ἐκείνων εἰσαχθέντα βεβαιῶσαι παρ' ἑαυτοῦ, ἀνύποπτον. Εἰμὶ γὰρ, φησίν. Ὁρᾷς ὅταν πρὸς τοὺς μαθητὰς διαλέγηται, πῶς ἐκκαλύπτων τὰ καθ' ἑαυτὸν φθέγγεται μᾶλλον; Ὥσπερ οὖν λέγει, Μὴ καλέσητε διδάσκαλον ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς· εἷς γὰρ ὑμῶν ἐστιν ὁ καθηγητής· οὕτω λέγει, Καὶ μὴ καλέσητε πατέρα ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς. Τὸ δὲ, Εἷς καὶ Εἷς, οὐ περὶ τοῦ Πατρὸς εἴρηται μόνον ἀλλὰ καὶ περὶ αὐτοῦ. Εἰ γὰρ ἑαυτὸν ἐκβάλλων ἔλεγε, πῶς φησιν, Ἵνα υἱοὶ φωτὸς γένησθε; Καὶ πάλιν, εἰ διδάσκαλον μόνον ἔλεγε τὸν Πατέρα, πῶς λέγει, Εἰμὶ γάρ; καὶ πάλιν, Εἷς ἐστιν ὑμῶν ὁ καθηγητὴς, ὁ Χριστός; Εἰ οὖν ἐγὼ, φησὶν, ὁ Κύριος καὶ ὁ ∆ιδάσκαλος, ἔνιψα ὑμῶν τοὺς πόδας, καὶ ὑμεῖς ἀλλήλους ὀφείλετε νίπτειν. Τοῦτο γὰρ ὑπόδειγμα ἔδωκα ὑμῖν, ἵνα καθὼς ἐγὼ ἐποίησα ὑμῖν, οὕτω καὶ ὑμεῖς ποιῆτε. Καὶ μὴν οὐκ ἔστι τὸ αὐτό. Αὐτὸς μὲν γὰρ διδάσκαλος καὶ Κύριος, ὑμεῖς δὲ ἀλλήλων ὁμόδουλοι. Τί οὖν ἐστι τὸ, Οὕτω; Μετὰ τῆς αὐτῆς σπουδῆς. ∆ιὰ γὰρ τοῦτο ἀπὸ τῶν μειζόνων πραγμάτων λαμβάνει τὰ παραδείγματα, ἵνα κἂν τὸ ἔλαττον ἐργασώμεθα. Καὶ γὰρ οἱ διδάσκαλοι τοῖς παισὶ τὰ γράμματα μετὰ πολλοῦ τοῦ κάλλους γράφουσιν, ἵνα κἂν πρὸς τὸ καταδεέστερον ἔλθωσι τῆς μιμήσεως. Ποῦ νῦν οἱ διαπτύοντες τοὺς ὁμοδούλους; ποῦ νῦν οἱ τὰς τιμὰς ἀπαιτοῦντες; Τοῦ προδότου τοὺς πόδας ὁ Χριστὸς ἔνιψε, τοῦ ἱεροσύλου καὶ κλέπτου, καὶ παρὰ τὸν καιρὸν τῆς προδοσίας, καὶ ἀνιάτως ἔχοντα τραπέζης κοινωνὸν 59.386 ἐποίησε· καὶ σὺ μέγα φρονεῖς καὶ τὰς ὀφρῦς ἀνασπᾷς; Τοὺς πόδας οὖν ἀλλήλων νίπτωμεν, φησίν· οὐκοῦν καὶ τῶν οἰκετῶν. Καὶ τί μέγα, εἰ καὶ τῶν οἰκετῶν; Ἐνταῦθα μὲν γὰρ ὁ δοῦλος καὶ ὁ ἐλεύθερος, ὀνομάτων ἐστὶ διαφορά· ἐκεῖ δὲ, πραγμάτων ἀλήθεια. Φύσει γὰρ αὐτὸς Κύριος ἦν, καὶ ἡμεῖς δοῦλοι, καὶ οὐδὲ τοῦτο παρῃτήσατο νῦν ποιεῖν. Νυνὶ δὲ ἀγαπητὸν, εἰ μὴ τοῖς ἐλευθέροις ὡς δούλοις ἡμεῖς χρησαίμεθα, ὡς ἀνδραπόδοις ἀργυρωνήτοις. Καὶ τί ἐροῦμεν τότε, τοσαύτης μὲν ἀνεξικακίας ὑποδείγματα λαβόντες, αὐτοὶ δὲ οὐδὲ μικρὸν μιμούμενοι, ἀλλ' ἐξ ἐναντίας ἑστῶτες, καὶ πρὸς διάμετρον ἐπαιρόμενοι, καὶ τὴν ὀφειλὴν οὐκ ἀποδιδόντες; Ὀφειλέτας γὰρ ἡμᾶς ἀλλήλων κατέστησεν ὁ Θεὸς, αὐτὸς κατάρξας τούτου, καὶ ὀφειλέτας ἐλάττονος μοίρας. Αὐτὸς μὲν γὰρ Κύριος ἦν· ἡμεῖς δὲ πρὸς τοὺς συνδούλους τοῦτο ποιοῦμεν, ἐὰν ποιήσωμεν. Ὃ δὴ καὶ αὐτὸ ᾐνίξατο διὰ τοῦ εἰπεῖν· Εἰ οὖν ἐγὼ, ὁ Κύριος καὶ ὁ ∆ιδάσκαλος· καὶ πάλιν, Οὕτω καὶ ὑμεῖς. Τὸ μὲν γὰρ ἀκόλουθον ἦν εἰπεῖν, Πόσῳ μᾶλλον ἡμεῖς οἱ δοῦλοι· ἀλλ' ἀφῆκεν αὐτὸ τῷ συνειδότι τῶν ἀκροωμένων. Τί δήποτε δὲ αὐτὸ νῦν πεποίηκεν; Ἔμελλον λοιπὸν τιμῆς ἀπολαύσεσθαι, οἱ μὲν πλείονος, οἱ δὲ ἐλάττονος. βʹ. Ἵν' οὖν μὴ κατ' ἀλλήλων ἐπαίρωνται, καὶ ταῦτα λέγωσιν ἃ καὶ πρὸ τούτου, Τίς ἐστι μείζων; μηδὲ ἀγανακτῶσι