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their flesh. How then can we be called Christians, having nothing of Christ in ourselves?

34. But perhaps someone will say, "I have faith, and my faith in him is sufficient for my salvation." But James answers him, saying, "Even the demons believe, and shudder." And again: "Faith without works is dead in itself"; as are works without faith. But how do we believe in him, or believe him concerning the things to come, when we do not believe him concerning things temporary and present; and for this reason are mixed up with material things, and live according to the flesh, and war against the Spirit? But those who have believed in Christ in truth, and have made him dwell wholly in themselves through the commandments, spoke thus: "I live, yet not I, but Christ lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." Therefore, suffering for him for the salvation of all, as his exact imitators and genuine keepers of his commandments, they said: "When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure; when slandered, we entreat;" because they heard him saying: "Love your enemies; do good to those who hate you; bless those who curse you; pray for those who mistreat you," and so forth; and from their words and their works Christ working in them was made manifest; but we, because we act contrary to all his commandments, for this reason have been filled with all impurity. And for this reason we have become, instead of a temple of God, a house of trade; and instead of a house of prayer, a den of thieves; instead of a holy nation, a sinful nation; and instead of the people of God, a people full of sins; instead of a holy seed, an evil seed; and instead of sons of God, lawless sons, because we have forsaken the commandments of the Lord, and we serve evil spirits through impure passions, and we have provoked the Holy One of Israel.

35. For this reason the great Isaiah, lamenting us, cries out, wishing at the same time to help our fall, saying: "Why should you be stricken any more, adding lawlessness? The whole head is in pain, and the whole heart in grief; from the feet to the head there is no soundness in it; neither wound, nor bruise, nor festering sore; there is no ointment to apply, nor oil, nor bandages." Then what follows this? "The daughter of Zion will be left like a booth in a vineyard, (941) and like a lodge in a cucumber field, like a besieged city." And the Apostle, declaring this desolation of our soul, said: "And just as they did not see fit to have God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, malice, greed; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malevolence, whisperers, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, without understanding, covenant-breakers, without natural affection, unforgiving, unmerciful; who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them." For this reason "God gave them up to dishonorable passions, for their bodies to be dishonored among themselves." And what follows this? "For the wrath of God," he says, "is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men," and so forth.

36. The Lord also, indicating this desolation of the soul, said: "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her; how often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! Behold, your house is left to you desolate." And Isaiah again: Seeing us the so-called monks performing only the bodily services, but despising the spiritual ones, and for this reason

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αὐτούς σάρκας. Πῶς οὖν δυνάμεθα ἀκούειν Χριστιανοί, τί ποτε τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐν ἑαυτοῖς μή ἔχοντες;

λδ΄. Ἀλλ᾿ ἐρεῖ τις ἴσως, ὅτι Ἔχω τήν πίστιν, καί ἀρκεῖ μοι ἡ πίστις ἡ εἰς αὐτόν πρός σωτηρίαν. Ἀλλ᾿ ἀντιφθέγγεται αὐτῷ ὁ Ἰάκωβος, λέγων, ὅτι Καί τά δαιμόνια πιστεύουσι, καί φρίσσουσι. Καί πάλιν· Ἡ πίστις χωρίς τῶν ἔργων, νεκρά ἐστι καθ᾿ ἑαυτήν· ὡς καί τά ἔργα δίχα πίστεως. Πῶς δέ καί πιστεύομεν εἰς αὐτόν, ἤ περί τῶν μελλόντων αὐτῷ πιστεύομεν, οἱ περί τῶν προσκαίρων καί παρόντων αὐτῷ μή πιστεύοντες· καί διά τοῦτο τοῖς ὑλικοῖς συμφυρόμενοι, καί τῇ σαρκί ζῶντες· καί κατά τοῦ Πνεύματος στρατευόμενοι; Οἱ δέ τῷ Χριστῷ ἐν ἀληθείᾳ πιστεύσαντες, καί ὅλον αὐτόν ἐν ἑαυτοῖς διά τῶν ἐντολῶν εἰσοικίσαντες, οὕτως ἔλεγον· Ζῶ δέ, οὐκέτι ἐγώ, ζῇ δέ ἐν ἐμοί ὁ Χριστός. Ὅ δέ νῦν ζῶ ἐν σαρκί, τῇ πίστει ζῶ τοῦ Υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ, τοῦ ἀγαπήσαντός με, καί δόντος ἑαυτόν ὑπέρ ἐμοῦ. ∆ιά τοῦτο πάσχοντες ὑπέρ αὐτοῦ δά τήν πάντων σωτηρίαν, ὡς ἀκριβεῖς αὐτοῦ μιμηταί, καί τῶν ἐντολῶν αὐτοῦ γνήσιοι φύλακες, ἔλεγον· Λοιδορούμενοι εὐλογοῦμεν, διωκόμενοι ἀνεχόμεθα, βλασφημούμενοι παρακαλοῦμεν· ἐπειδή ἤκουον αὐτοῦ λέγοντος· Ἀγαπᾶτε τούς ἐχθρούς ὑμῶν· καλῶς ποιεῖτε τοῖς μισοῦσιν ὑμᾶς· εὐλογεῖτε τούς καταρωμένους ὑμᾶς· προσεύχεσθε ὑπέρ τῶν ἐπηρεαζόντων ὑμᾶς, καί τά ἑξῆς· καί ἐκ τῶν λόγων καί τῶν ἔργων ὁ ἐνεργῶν ἐν αὐτοῖς Χριστός ἐφανεροῦτο· ἡμεῖς δέ, ἐπειδή πάσαις ταῖς ἐντολαῖς αὐτοῦ ἀντιπράττομεν, διά τοῦτο πάσης ἀκαθαρσίας ἐνεπλήσθημεν. Καί διά τοῦτο γεγόναμεν, ἀντί ναοῦ Θεοῦ, οἶκος ἐμπορίου· καί ἀντί οἴκου προσευχῆς, σπήλαιον λῃστῶν· ἀντί ἔθνους ἁγίου, ἔθνος ἁμαρτωλόν· καί ἀντί λαοῦ Θεοῦ, λαός πλήρης ἁμαρτιῶν· ἀντί σπέρματος ἁγίου, σπέρμα πονηρόν· καί ἀντί υἱῶν Θεοῦ, υἱοί ἄνομοι, ἐπειδή ἐγκαταλίπομεν τάς ἐντολάς τοῦ Κυρίου, καί δουλεύομεν τοῖς πονηροῖς πνεύμασι διά τῶν ἀκαθάρτων παθῶν, καί παρωργίσαμεν τόν ἅγιον τοῦ Ἰσραήλ.

λε΄. ∆ιά τοῦτο θρηνῶν ἡμᾶς ὁ μέγας Ἡσαΐας, κράζει, βοηθῆσαι ἅμα βουλόμενος τῇ πτώσει ἡμῶν, λέγων· Τί ἔτι πληγῆτε προστιθέντες ἀνομίαν; Πᾶσα κεφαλή εἰς πόνον, καί πᾶσα καρδία εἰς λύπην· ἀπό ποδῶν ἕως κεφαλῆς οὐκ ἔστιν ἐν αὐτῷ ὁλοκληρία· οὔτε τραῦμα, οὔτε μώλωψ, οὔτε πληγή φλεγμαίνουσα· οὐκ ἔστι μάλαγμα ἐπιθεῖναι, οὔτε ἔλαιον, οὔτε καταδέσμους. Εἶτα τί τό ἐπί τούτοις; Ἐγκαταλειφθήσεται ἡ θυγάτηρ Σιών ὡς σκηνή ἐν ἀμπελῶνι, (941) καί ὡς ὀπωροφυλάκιον ἐν σικυηλάτῳ, ὡς πόλις πολιορκουμένη. Ταύτην ἡμῶν τῆς ψυχῆς τήν ἐρήμωσιν καί ὁ Ἀπόστολος δηλῶν, ἔλεγε· Καί καθώς οὐκ ἐδοκίμασαν τόν Θεόν ἔχειν ἐν ἐπιγνώσει, παρέδωκεν αὐτούς ὁ Θεός εἰς ἀδόκιμον νοῦν, ποιεῖν τά μή καθήκοντα· πεπληρωμένους πάσῃ ἀδικίᾳ, κακίᾳ, πονηρίᾳ, πλεονεξίᾳ· μεστούς φθόνου, φόνου, ἔριδος, δόλου, κακοηθείας, ψιθυριστάς, καταλάλους, θεοστυγεῖς, ὑβριστάς, ὑπερηφάνους, ἀλαζόνας, ἐφευρέτας κακῶν, γονεῦσιν ἀπειθεῖς, ἀσυνέτους, ἀσυνθέτους, ἀστόργους, ἀσπόνδους, ἀνελεήμονας· οἵτινες τό δικαίωμα τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐπιγνόντες, ὅτι οἱ τά τοιαῦτα πράσσοντες ἄξιοι θανάτου εἰσίν, οὐ μόνον αὐτά ποιοῦσιν, ἀλλά καί συνευδοκοῦσι τοῖς πράσσουσι. ∆ιά τοῦτο παρέδωκεν αὐτούς ὁ Θεός εἰς πάθη ἀτιμίας, τοῦ ἀτιμάζεσθαι τά σώματα αὐτῶν ἐν ἑαυτοῖς. Καί τί τό ἐπί τούτοις; Ἀποκαλύπτεται, φησίν, ὁργή Θεοῦ ἀπ᾿ οὐρανοῦ ἐπί πᾶσαν ἀσέβειαν καί ἀδικίαν ἀνθρώπων, καί τά ἑξῆς.

λστ΄. Ταύτην τῆς ψυχῆς ἐρήμωσιν καί ὁ Κύριος μηνύων, ἔλεγεν· Ἱερουσαλήμ, Ἱερουσαλήμ ἡ ἀποκτείνουσα τούς προφήτας, καί λιθοβολοῦσα τούς ἀπεσταλμένους πρός αὐτήν· ποσάκις ἠθέλησα ἐπισυναγαγεῖν τά τέκνα σου, ὡς ὄρνις τά νοσσία αὐτῆς ὑπό τάς πτέρυγας, καί οὐκ ἠθελήσατε; Ἰδού ἀφίεται ὁ οἶκος ὑμῶν ἔρημος. Ὁ δέ Ἡσαΐας πάλιν· Ὁρῶν ἡμᾶς τούς δῆθεν μοναχούς τάς σωματικάς λειτουργίας ἐπιτελοῦντας μόνον, καταφρονοῦντας δέ τῶν πνευματικῶν, καί διά τοῦτο