324

For I wish, if it is possible, even to know how to spend time with one another; but for now let the things of friendship remain unshaken. For the place does not make the friends. At any rate, they have many who admire them; but they would not have admired, if they had not loved. And they in turn pray for the whole world, which is the greatest proof of friendship. For this reason also in the mysteries we greet one another, that we, the many, might become one; and for the uninitiated we make common prayers, supplicating for the sick, and for the fruits of the world, and for land and sea. Do you see the whole power of love? in the prayers? in the mysteries? in the exhortations? This is the cause of all good things. If we hold fast to this with exactness, we will both manage our present affairs well and will attain the kingdom; of which may it be granted to all of us to attain, by the grace and loving-kindness of our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom and with whom to the Father be the glory, together with the Holy Spirit, unto ages of ages. Amen.

59.425 HOMILY 79. A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and

you will see Me, because I go to the Father. Then some of His disciples said to one another, What is this that He says, A little while? and the rest.

1. Nothing is so accustomed to cast down a soul that is in pain and possessed by much despondency, as words which produce grief being constantly repeated. Why then does Christ, having said, I go, and, I will no longer speak with 59.426.50 you, continually repeat the same things, saying, A little while, and you will no longer see me; and, Because I go to Him that sent me? For when He had revived them through the words about the Spirit, then again He casts down their spirits. For what reason then does He do this? He tests their mind, and makes it more approved, and accustoms them well in hearing painful things to bear His separation nobly. For those who had practiced this in words, were going to bear it easily also in deeds thereafter. But if one should examine accurately, even 59.427 this very thing is a consolation, to say, that I go away to the Father. For this was an indication that He will not perish, but that His end is a kind of translation. And He placed in them another consolation. For He did not say only, A little while, and you will no longer see me; but He also added, A little while, and you will see me, showing that He will return, and the separation will be for a short time, and the fellowship with them will be continuous. However, they did not understand this. Whence also one might reasonably wonder how, hearing these things many times, they doubt as if they had heard nothing. From where, then, did they not understand? Either on account of their grief, as I think (for this was casting out the things being said from their mind), or on account of the obscurity of what was being said. Therefore it also seemed to them that He was positing two contrary things, which were not contrary. For if we will see you, he says, where are you going? but if you are going, how will we see you? For this reason they say, We do not know what He is saying. For they knew that He was about to go away; but they were ignorant that after a little while He would come to them. For this reason indeed He also rebukes them, because they did not understand what was being said. For wishing to implant in them the doctrine concerning death, what does He say? Truly, truly, I say to you, that you will weep and lament; which was of death and of the cross; But the world will rejoice. For since, because they did not wish it, they were quick to believe that He would not die, then having heard that He would die, they were in doubt, not knowing what the, A little while, ever is; He says, You will weep and lament; but your grief will turn into joy. Then showing that after grief joy comes, and that grief gives birth to joy, and that the former is brief, but the pleasure is endless, He came to a worldly example; and what does He say? A woman when she is in labor has sorrow. And He uses a parable, which the prophets also used, constantly comparing despondencies to the extremity of labor pains. But what He says,

324

μὲν γὰρ βούλομαι, εἰ δυνατὸν, καὶ συνδιατρίβειν ἀλλήλοις εἰδέναι· τέως δὲ μενέτω τὰ τῆς φιλίας ἀκίνητα. Οὐ γὰρ ὁ τόπος ποιεῖ τοὺς φίλους. Πολλοὺς γοῦν ἔχουσι τοὺς θαυμάζοντας· οὐκ ἂν δὲ ἐθαύμασαν, εἰ μὴ ἐφίλουν. Καὶ αὐτοὶ πάλιν ὑπὲρ ἁπάσης εὔχονται τῆς οἰκουμένης, ὅπερ μέγιστον φιλίας ἐστὶ τεκμήριον. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ ἐν τοῖς μυστηρίοις ἀσπαζόμεθα ἀλλήλους, ἵνα οἱ πολλοὶ γενώμεθα ἕν· καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν ἀμυήτων κοινὰς ποιούμεθα τὰς εὐχὰς, λιτανεύοντες ὑπὲρ νοσούντων, καὶ τῶν καρπῶν τῆς οἰκουμένης, καὶ γῆς καὶ θαλάττης. Ὁρᾷς πᾶσαν τῆς ἀγάπης τὴν δύναμιν; ἐν ταῖς εὐχαῖς; ἐν τοῖς μυστηρίοις; ἐν ταῖς παραινέσεσι; Τοῦτο πάντων αἴτιον τῶν ἀγαθῶν. Ἂν ταύτης ἐχώμεθα μετὰ ἀκριβείας, καὶ τὰ παρόντα καλῶς οἰκονομήσομεν, καὶ τῆς βασιλείας ἐπιτευξόμεθα· ἧς γένοιτο πάντας ἡμᾶς ἐπιτυχεῖν, χάριτι καὶ φιλανθρωπίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, δι' οὗ καὶ μεθ' οὗ τῷ Πατρὶ ἡ δόξα, ἅμα τῷ ἁγίῳ Πνεύματι, εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν.

59.425 ΟΜΙΛΙΑ ΟΘʹ. Μικρὸν, καὶ οὐ θεωρεῖτέ με· καὶ πάλιν μικρὸν, καὶ

ὄψεσθέ με, ὅτι ὑπάγω πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα. Εἶπον οὖν ἐκ τῶν μαθητῶν αὐτοῦ πρὸς ἀλλήλους· Τί ἐστιν ὃ λέγει, Μικρόν; καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς.

αʹ. Τὴν ὀδυνωμένην ψυχὴν καὶ ὑπὸ ἀθυμίας κατεχομένην πολλῆς οὐδὲν

οὕτως εἴωθε καταβάλλειν, ὡς τὰ τὴν λύπην τίκτοντα ῥήματα στρεφόμενα συνεχῶς. Τί δήποτε οὖν ὁ Χριστὸς εἰπὼν, Ὑπάγω, καὶ, Οὐκ ἔτι λαλήσω μεθ' 59.426.50 ὑμῶν, συνεχῶς τὰ αὐτὰ στρέφει, λέγων· Μικρὸν, καὶ οὐκ ἔτι θεωρεῖτέ με· καὶ, Ὅτι ὑπάγω πρὸς τὸν πέμψαντά με; Ὅτε γὰρ αὐτοὺς ἀνεκτήσατο διὰ τῶν περὶ τοῦ Πνεύματος λόγων, τότε πάλιν αὐτῶν καταβάλλει τὰ φρονήματα. Τίνος οὖν ἕνεκεν τοῦτο ποιεῖ; Βασανίζει τὴν διάνοιαν, καὶ δοκιμωτέραν ἐργάζεται, καὶ συνεθίζει καλῶς αὐτοὺς ἐν τῇ τῶν λυπηρῶν ἀκροάσει γενναίως ἐνεγκεῖν αὐτοῦ τὸν χωρισμόν. Οἱ γὰρ ἐν τοῖς ῥήμασι τοῦτο μελετήσαντες, ἔμελλον καὶ ἐν τοῖς πράγμασιν αὐτὸ ῥᾳδίως οἴσειν λοιπόν. Εἰ δέ τις ἀκριβῶς ἐξετάσειε, καὶ 59.427 αὐτὸ τοῦτο παραμυθία ἐστὶ, τὸ εἰπεῖν, ὅτι Πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα ἀπέρχομαι. Τοῦτο γὰρ δηλοῦντος ἦν, ὅτι οὐκ ἀπολεῖται, ἀλλὰ μετάστασίς τίς ἐστιν αὐτοῦ ἡ τελευτή. Καὶ ἑτέραν παραμυθίαν αὐτοῖς ἐνέθηκεν. Οὐ γὰρ εἶπε, Μικρὸν, καὶ οὐκ ἔτι θεωρεῖτέ με, μόνον· ἀλλὰ καὶ προσέθηκε· Μικρὸν, καὶ ὄψεσθέ με, δηλῶν ὅτι καὶ ἐπανήξει, καὶ πρὸς ὀλίγον ἔσται ὁ χωρισμὸς, καὶ διηνεκὴς ἡ μετ' αὐτῶν συνουσία. Τοῦτο μέντοι οὐ συνεῖδον. Ὅθεν καὶ εἰκότως ἄν τις θαυμάσειε, πῶς πολλάκις ταῦτα ἀκούοντες, ὡς μηδὲν ἀκηκοότες οὕτως ἀμφιβάλλουσι. Πόθεν οὖν οὐ συνίεσαν; Ἢ διὰ τὴν λύπην, ὡς ἔγωγε οἶμαι (αὕτη γὰρ ἐξέβαλλε τῆς διανοίας αὐτῶν τὰ λεγόμενα), ἢ διὰ τὴν ἀσάφειαν τῶν λεγομένων. ∆ιὸ καὶ ἔδοξεν αὐτοῖς δύο ἐναντία τιθέναι, οὐκ ὄντα ἐναντία. Εἰ γὰρ ὀψόμεθά σε, φησὶ, ποῦ ὑπάγεις; εἰ δὲ ὑπάγεις, πῶς ὀψόμεθά σε; ∆ιὰ τοῦτο λέγουσιν, Οὐκ οἴδαμεν τί λαλεῖ. Ὅτι μὲν γὰρ ἀπιέναι ἔμελλεν, ᾔδεσαν· ἠγνόουν δὲ ὅτι μετὰ μικρὸν ἥξει πρὸς αὐτούς. ∆ιὰ δὴ τοῦτο καὶ ἐπιτιμᾷ αὐτοῖς, ὅτι οὐ συνεῖδον τὸ λεγόμενον. Βουλόμενος γὰρ αὐτοῖς ἐμπῆξαι τὸ περὶ τοῦ θανάτου δόγμα, τί φησιν; Ἀμὴν, ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν, ὅτι κλαύσετε καὶ θρηνήσετε ὑμεῖς· ὅπερ ἦν τοῦ θανάτου καὶ τοῦ σταυροῦ· Ὁ δὲ κόσμος χαρήσεται. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ διὰ τὸ μὴ βούλεσθαι ταχέως ἐπέτρεχον τῷ πιστεύειν, ὅτι οὐκ ἀποθανεῖται, εἶτα ἀκούσαντες ὅτι ἀποθανεῖται, ἀμφέβαλλον οὐκ εἰδότες τί ποτέ ἐστι τὸ, Μικρόν· φησί· Κλαύσετε καὶ θρηνήσετε· ἀλλ' ἡ λύπη ὑμῶν εἰς χαρὰν γενήσεται. Εἶτα δεικνὺς, ὅτι μετὰ τὴν λύπην χαρὰ γίνεται, καὶ ὅτι ἡ λύπη τίκτει τὴν χαρὰν, καὶ ὅτι αὕτη μὲν βραχεῖα, ἡ δὲ ἡδονὴ ἀπέραντος, ἐπὶ παράδειγμα ἦλθε κοσμικόν· καὶ τί φησιν; Ἡ γυνὴ ὅταν τίκτῃ, λύπην ἔχει. Καὶ κέχρηται παραβολῇ, ᾗ καὶ οἱ προφῆται, συνεχῶς τῇ ὑπερβολῇ τῶν ὠδίνων τὰς ἀθυμίας παραβάλλοντες. Ὃ δὲ λέγει,