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so to speak, it sees the sun itself and leaps and desires to go out of the body and be with the one it longs for; which is the highest object of desire for those who have partaken of reason. Let us fast then, in the second place, from both the quantity and the quality of foods, and to such an extent as the strength of the body allows; for the Apostle says: Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion; for God loves a cheerful giver and what is according to one's ability. This can be said literally of you, the abbess, but for the sisterhood it has no force, because for each one eating and drinking and the rest of their conduct is according to the rule given by you, so that you need a discerning eye to properly oversee their affairs. And in common for all is abstinence from untimely idle talk, unseemly envy, meddlesome laziness, but rather to keep a timely silence and to speak a necessary word, and to love and cherish one another according to the Lord and to have all things in common and nothing set apart as one's own, nor to do anything from self-will, even if it seems well-pleasing, but as it has been ordered by you, nor to have a divided heart in one's relations with kin according to the flesh, much less in affections for any others, but for the soul to be wholly and entirely united to God, both to the abbess and to the sisters in spirit, so that it may be testified that that which was said of the apostles is said of you: that the heart and soul of all was one, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common. Where this has been achieved, there the apostolic life is seen, there is the peace of God which passes all understanding, there is the sorrowless and blessed life, there is the chorus of the wise virgins, there is the bridegroom Christ, in the midst seeing and being seen, nourishing and being nourished in the mind, sweetening and being sweetened, loving and being loved in return, since he both nourishes with his brilliant rays and is nourished by each one's progress in virtue; for he hungers for the salvation of each one and, as it were, inspects the fig tree; and if he finds God-given fruit on it, he is nourished by this, but if not, it is cursed, as the Gospel recounts. Let us strive then, sister in the Lord, both we and you, to bear fruits from innate and divine thoughts, sweet to the Lord, both through our whole life, and in the coming holy period of self-control, so that we may nourish him when he arrives at holy Pascha, blessing us for our fruitfulness and, as those who are conformed to his sufferings, raising us up with him and glorifying us with him on the great and terrible day of his appearing; for to him is due glory, honor and worship, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, now and forever and unto the ages of ages. Amen. 484 {1To Theodotus the general}1 Of a truly existing friend, both the sorrow and the joy are naturally transferred to the one who loves, if indeed one relationship is observed in both according to the principle of relation. Since, therefore, the sorrow of our most desired lord concerning the heterodox communion has now been announced to us by the lady, the most devout abbess, the affliction has truly touched us, the humble ones, and has created pain in our heart, as we consider the contrary encounter. O the misfortune! What is this involuntary abduction? And what is this compulsory communion, which threatens danger to the flesh for not choosing to partake of the heterodox bread? The body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ is a voluntary sacrifice, O most Christian of thinkers; for the great apostle says of him: who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Since, therefore, it is voluntarily sacrificed and voluntarily given, it is for those who are willing, but not for those who are unwilling; for the Lord himself says in the gospels to the apostles,

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σχεδὸν εἰπεῖν, καὶ αὐτὸν τὸν ἥλιον ὁρᾶν καὶ σφαδάζει καὶ τοῦ σώματος ἐκβῆναι καὶ πρὸς τὸν ποθούμενον γενέσθαι· ὅπερ ἐστὶ τὸ ἀκρότατον ὀρεκτὸν τοῖς λόγου μετειληφόσιν. νηστεύσωμεν δὴ κατὰ δεύτερον λόγον καὶ ἀπὸ βρωμάτων ποσότητός τε καὶ ποιότητος καὶ τοσοῦτον, ὁπόσον ἡ δύναμις τοῦ σώματος φέρει· φησὶ γὰρ ὁ ἀπόστολος· ἕκαστος καθὼς προαιρεῖται τῇ καρδίᾳ, μὴ ἐκ λύπης ἢ ἐξ ἀνάγκης· τὸ ἱλαρὸν γὰρ ἀγαπᾷ ὁ θεὸς καὶ τὸ κατὰ δύναμιν. τοῦτο δὲ ἐπὶ σοῦ τῆς καθηγουμένης κυριολεκτεῖσθαι δύναται, ἐπὶ δὲ τῆς ἀδελφότητος οὐκ ἔχει δύναμιν διὰ τὸ κατὰ τὴν ὑπὸ σοῦ δεδομένην διάταξιν καὶ ἐσθίειν καὶ πίνειν καὶ τὴν ἄλλην ἀγωγὴν εἶναι ἐφ' ἑκάστης, ὥστε διακριτικοῦ ὄμματός σοι χρεία προσηκόντως τὰ κατ' αὐτὰς ἐπιθεωρεῖν. κοινῶς δὲ ἐπὶ πᾶσι τὸ ἀπέχεσθαι ματαιολογίας ἀκαίρου, βασκανίας ἀτόπου, ἀργίας περιέργου, μᾶλλον μὲν οὖν ἡσυχίαν ἄγειν εὔκαιρον καὶ λόγον φθέγγεσθαι δέοντα καὶ ἀγαπᾶν καὶ στέργειν ἀλλήλας κατὰ Κύριον καὶ πάντα κοινὰ ἔχειν καὶ μηδὲν ἀποτεταγμένως ἴδιον, μήτε μὴν ἰδιοβούλως τι πράττειν, κἂν δοκῇ εὐάρεστον εἶναι, ἀλλ' ὡς ὑπὸ σοῦ διατέτακται, μήτε μεμερισμένην ἔχειν τὴν καρδίαν ἐν ταῖς τῶν κατὰ σάρκα ἰδίων σχέσεσι, σχολῇ γε εἰπεῖν ἐν ἄλλων τινῶν ἀγαπήσεσιν, ἀλλ' ὅλην δι' ὅλου τὴν ψυχὴν συνημμένην εἶναι πρὸς θεόν, εἴς τε τὴν καθηγουμένην καὶ πρὸς τὰς κατὰ πνεῦμα ἀδελφάς, ὡς μαρτυρεῖσθαι ἐκεῖνο ἐφ' ὑμῖν λελέχθαι, ὅπερ καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν ἀποστόλων, ὅτι ἦν ἡ καρδία καὶ ἡ ψυχὴ μία πάντων καὶ οὐδείς τι τῶν ὑπαρχόντων αὐτῷ ἔλεγεν ἴδιον, ἀλλ' ἦν ἅπαντα κοινά. Ὅπου οὖν τοῦτο κεκατώρθωται, ἐκεῖ ὁ ἀποστολικὸς βίος τεθεώρηται, ἐκεῖ ἡ εἰρήνη τοῦ θεοῦ, ἡ ὑπερέχουσα πάντα νοῦν, ἐκεῖ ἡ ἄλυπος καὶ μακαρία ζωή, ἐκεῖ ἡ τῶν φρονίμων παρθένων χορεία, ἐκεῖ ὁ νυμφίος Χριστός, μέσος ὁρῶν καὶ ὁρώμενος, κατὰ νοῦν τρέφων καὶ τρεφόμενος, γλυκαίνων καὶ γλυκαινόμενος, ἐρῶν καὶ ἀντερώμενος, ἐπειδὴ καὶ τρέφει ταῖς φωταυγέσι καὶ τρέφεται ταῖς εἰς ἀρετὴν ἑκάστου ἐπιδόσεσι· πεινᾷ γὰρ τὴν ἑκάστου σωτηρίαν καὶ οἱονεὶ ἐπισκέπτεται τὴν συκῆν· κἂν μὲν εὕρῃ καρπὸν ἐν αὐτῇ θεόβλαστον, ταύτῃ τρέφεται, εἰ δ' οὖν, ἐπικεκατάραται, καθάπερ ἱστορεῖ τὸ εὐαγγέλιον. Σπουδάσωμεν τοίνυν, ἀδελφὴ ἐν Κυρίῳ, καὶ ἡμεῖς καὶ ὑμεῖς καρποὺς ἐνεγκεῖν ἐξ ἐμφύτων καὶ θείων λογισμῶν γλυκεῖς τῷ Κυρίῳ, τοῦτο μὲν δι' ὅλης τῆς βιώσεως ἡμῶν, τοῦτο δὲ κἀν τῇ ἐπιούσῃ ἱερᾷ ἐγκρατείᾳ, ὡς ἂν θρέψοιμεν αὐτὸν κατὰ τὸ ἅγιον Πάσχα παραγενόμενον, εὐλογοῦντά τε ἡμᾶς ἐπὶ καρποφορίᾳ καὶ ὡς συμμόρφους τοῖς παθήμασιν αὐτοῦ συναναστήσοντα καὶ συνδοξάσοντα ἡμᾶς κατὰ τὴν ἡμέραν τὴν μεγάλην καὶ φοβερὰν τῆς ἐπιφανείας αὐτοῦ· ὅτι αὐτῷ πρέπει δόξα, τιμὴ καὶ προσκύνησις σὺν τῷ πατρὶ καὶ τῷ Ἁγίῳ Πνεύματι νῦν καὶ ἀεὶ καὶ εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. ἀμήν. 484 {1Θεοδότῳ στρατηγῷ}1 Τοῦ ὄντως ὄντος φίλου καὶ ἡ λύπη καὶ ἡ χαρὰ μεταβαίνειν πέφυκε πρὸς τὸν φιλοῦντα, εἴπερ μία σχέσις ἐν ἀμφοτέροις κατὰ τὸν τοῦ πρός τι λόγον τεθεώρηται. ἐπεὶ οὖν καὶ ἡ τοῦ περιποθήτου ἡμῶν δεσπότου περὶ τῆς ἑτεροδόξου κοινωνίας λύπη ἀνηγγέλθη ἡμῖν παρὰ τῆς κυρίας τῆς εὐλαβεστάτης ἡγουμένης τὸ νῦν, τῷ ὄντι ἥψατο καὶ ἡμῶν τῶν ταπεινῶν τὸ πάθος καὶ ἄλγος ἐνεποίησεν ἡμῖν κατὰ καρδίαν, ἐννοοῦσι τὸ ἐναντίον ἀπάντημα. ὢ τῆς συμφορᾶς· τίς αὕτη ἡ ἀκούσιος ἀπαγωγή; τίς δὲ ἡ ἀναγκαστικὴ μέθεξις, ἐπαπειλοῦσα τὸν κατὰ σάρκα κίνδυνον ἐν τῷ μὴ προαιρεῖσθαι μεθέξειν τοῦ ἑτεροδόξου ἄρτου; ἑκουσιόθυτον, ὦ χριστιανικώτατε λογισμέ, τὸ σῶμα καὶ αἷμα τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ· φησὶ γὰρ ὁ μέγας ἀπόστολος περὶ αὐτοῦ· ὅς, ἐν μορφῇ θεοῦ ὑπάρχων, οὐχ ἁρπαγμὸν ἡγήσατο τὸ εἶναι ἴσα θεῷ, ἀλλ' ἑαυτὸν ἐκένωσεν, μορφὴν δούλου λαβὼν ἐν ὁμοιώματι ἀνθρώπων γενόμενος· καὶ σχήματι εὑρεθεὶς ὡς ἄνθρωπος ἐταπείωνσεν ἑαυτόν, γενόμενος ὑπήκοος μέχρι θανάτου, θανάτου δὲ σταυροῦ. ἐπεὶ οὖν ἑκουσιόθυτον καὶ ἑκουσιόδοτον, τοῖς ἐθέλουσιν, ἀλλ' οὐχὶ τοῖς μὴ ἐθέλουσιν· καὶ γὰρ αὐτὸς ὁ Κύριος ἐν τοῖς εὐαγγελίοις φησὶ πρὸς τοὺς ἀποστόλους,