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He has taken away; as it seemed good to the Lord, so has it happened. If, therefore, O beloved, we both dispose ourselves to and utter these things, we would not be far from their portion, but indeed we would also make this a beautiful epitaph for that blessed one, and we will shape through ourselves the branches given to you from God into an image of a God-pleasing life, and from this all things will turn out for your good; for what God, the eternal one, the master of all, would do in us, finding us receiving it favorably, how would he not also dispose our present circumstances well by the consolation of his Holy Spirit and prepare future delights in endless ages? These things I, although brief, have nevertheless written and urged as one who is yours in love; but you, O master, deign to greet your own precious children on our behalf. 506 {1To the Abbess Euphrosyne}1 That we care for your honor is testified by this our humble letter; for it is not right to break the promise we made to that blessed and holy mother to attend to your reverence by visiting you in word, as much as is possible, whether we are far or near. And yet, even if we did not have that promise, from your own confidence in and care for us humble ones alone we would have been persuaded to offer our concern through this letter. Be well, therefore, my most honored one, and lead the flock which the holy mother entrusted to you, or rather, through her, God did, in a manner befitting God and with care. Know that your task of leadership is a very great undertaking; understand the vision of the souls under your hand, that it is a bridal-chamber for the king of the heavens, for Christ, the only beautiful and incorruptible bridegroom; who has not entrusted to you one bride for the day of his wedding through the union in the Holy Spirit, but as many as you have, with you yourself being the first bride. For Jesus, being one who weds many and weds countless, also weds those like you who have come through this life, and he desires to be joined to all souls of both men and women, in order to fill the bridal chamber above; in which many dwelling-places, like so many chambers, have been prepared by the Father for the souls that will be deemed worthy through a pure life and sincere faith, when the time of the revelation of the bridegroom arrives, to run after him and enter with him into the bridal chamber and to enjoy that endless joy for ages of ages. Behold, your ministry, which you have received from the Lord, has been shown to be great and a requital of many heavenly rewards, so that you might bring not only yourself but also many brides to the immortal bridegroom. For whom how great and of what sort is the reward! He will place you among the foremost brides, among the chosen virgins; He will provide you with adornments, the eternal gifts of the Spirit, luminous garments, gleaming incorruptibility; He will crown you with the crown of righteousness; you will dance an unending dance equal to the angels with inexhaustible exultation. See, therefore, lady, and attend to yourself and guard the brides of Christ with anxious care; feed them with the pure bread of orthodoxy, give them to drink from the stream of right conduct, so that they might be plump and beautiful. The word is concerning the beauty of the soul, which Christ our God also desires, as the holy David promises; for he says: 'Listen, O daughter, and see, and incline your ear; forget your people and your father's house, and the king will desire your beauty. Since he is your Lord, and you shall worship him.' Do you see that when you forgot, that is, renounced, parents, brothers and kinsmen, friends and all the things of this life, the king desired the beauty of your soul for marriage? And the words, "4since he is your Lord, and you shall worship him,"5 will come to pass for you on the day of his appearing. O, o, what a decision you made, forgetting all things! Ah, ah, what a bridegroom you have obtained! Clap your hands, shout to God with a voice of exultation, because you have been exalted above all the kingdoms on earth, above

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ἀφείλετο, ὡς τῷ Κυρίῳ ἔδοξεν, οὕτως καὶ ἐγένετο. ἐὰν οὖν ταῦτα, ὦ φιλότης, ἐφ' ἑαυτοῖς καὶ διαθώμεθα καὶ φθεγξώμεθα, οὐ μακρὰν εἴημεν τῆς μερίδος ἐκείνων, ἀλλὰ γὰρ καὶ τῇ μακαρίᾳ ἐκείνῃ τοῦτο καλὸν ἐπιτάφιον ποιησαίμεθα, αὐτούς τε τοὺς ἐκ θεοῦ δοθέντας ὑμῖν κλάδους ὑποτυπωσόμεθα δι' ἑαυτῶν εἰς εἰκόνα θεοτερποῦς βιώσεως καὶ πάντα ὑμῖν ἐντεῦθεν εἰς καλὸν ἀπαντήσοι· ἃ γὰρ ὁ θεὸς ὁ αἰώνιος, ὁ τῶν ἁπάντων δεσπότης, ποιῶν ἐν ἡμῖν εὕροιεν εὐμενῶς δεχομένους, πῶς οὐκ ἂν καὶ τὰ παρόντα ἡμῖν εὖ διάθηται τῇ παρακλήσει τοῦ Ἁγίου αὐτοῦ Πνεύματος καὶ τὰ μέλλοντα ἑτοιμάσειεν ἀπολαυστήρια ἐν αἰῶσιν ἀπείροις; Ταῦτα ἐγὼ μέν, εἰ καὶ βραχέα, ὅμως ὡς σὸς ἐν ἀγάπῃ καὶ γέγραφα καὶ παρεκάλεσα· αὐτὸς δέ, ὦ δέσποτα, αὐτὰ τὰ τίμιά σου τέκνα προσειπεῖν περὶ ἡμῶν ἀξίωσον. 506 {1Εὐφροσύνῃ ἡγουμένῃ}1 Ὅτι μέλει ἡμῖν περὶ τῆς τιμιότητός σου μαρτύριον τὸ τῇδε ἡμῶν ταπεινὸν γράμμα· οὐδὲ γάρ, ὃν λόγον ὑπεσχόμεθα τῇ μακαρίᾳ ἐκείνῃ καὶ ἁγίᾳ μητρὶ ἐπὶ τὸ περιέπειν ἡμᾶς τὴν σεμνοπρέπειάν σου ἐν τῇ διὰ λόγου ἐπισκέψει καθ' ὅσον οἷόν τε, μακρόθεν ἢ ἐγγύθεν ὄντας, ὅσιον διαψεύσασθαι. καίτοι γε, εἰ καὶ μὴ ἐκεῖθεν εἴχομεν τὸν λόγον, κἀξ αὐτῆς σου μόνης τῆς περὶ ἡμᾶς τοὺς εὐτελεῖς πεποιθήσεώς τε καὶ περιποιήσεως ἐπειθόμεθα ἂν τὴν διὰ τοῦ γράμματος προσοίσειν ἐπιμέλειαν. Ὑγίαινε τοιγαροῦν, ὦ τιμιωτάτη μοι, καὶ ἄγοιο τὸ ποίμνιον, ὃ παρέθετό σοι ἡ ἁγία ἀμμάς, μᾶλλον δὲ δι' αὐτῆς ὁ θεός, θεοπρεπῶς καὶ ἐπιμελῶς. ἴσθι ὡς μέγιστον τὸ τῆς προστασίας σου ἐγχείρημα, γνῶθι τῶν ὑπὸ χεῖρά σου ψυχῶν τὸ θεώρημα, ὅτι νυμφοφυλακτήριόν ἐστι τοῦ βασιλέως τῶν οὐρανῶν, τοῦ μόνου ὡραίου καὶ ἀφθάρτου νυμφίου Χριστοῦ· ὃς οὐ μίαν νύμφην σοι παρέθετο εἰς ἡμέραν νυμφεύσεως αὐτοῦ διὰ τῆς ἐν Ἁγίῳ Πνεύματι συναφείας, ἀλλὰ τοσαύτας, ὅσας γε καὶ ἔχοις, σοῦ τε αὐτῆς πρωτονύμφου τυγχανούσης. νυμφεύεται γὰρ Ἰησοῦς καὶ τὰς ὡς σὺ διὰ βίου ἐληλυθυίας ὡς πολύνυμφος καὶ ἀπειρόνυμφος καὶ πάσας ψυχὰς ἀνδρῶν τε καὶ γυναικῶν ἐρῶν ἁρμόζεσθαι εἰς τὸ πληρῶσαι τὸν ἄνω νυμφῶνα· ἐν ᾧ πολλαὶ αἱ μοναὶ οἷά τινες θάλαμοι παρὰ τοῦ πατρὸς ἡτοιμάσθησαν ταῖς ἀξιωθησομέναις ψυχαῖς διὰ βίου καθαροῦ καὶ πίστεως εἰλικρινοῦς, ἡνίκα φθάσῃ ὁ καιρὸς τῆς ἀποκαλύψεως τοῦ νυμφίου, ὀπίσω αὐτοῦ δραμεῖν καὶ συνεισελθεῖν ἐν τῷ νυμφῶνι καὶ τῆς ἀπεράντου χαρᾶς ἐκείνης ἀπολαῦσαι εἰς αἰῶνας αἰώνων. ἰδοὺ ὑποδέδεικταί σου ἡ διακονία, ἣν παρέλαβες παρὰ Κυρίου, μεγάλη τε καὶ πολλῶν ἀμοιβαία μισθῶν οὐρανίων, ὡς μὴ μόνον σέ, ἀλλὰ καὶ πολλὰς νύμφας προσοῖσαι τῷ ἀθανάτῳ νυμφίῳ. ὑπὲρ ὧν ὅση καὶ ἡλίκη ἡ ἀνταπόδοσις· τετάξεταί σε ἐν προυχούσαις νύμφαις, ἐν ἐκλεκταῖς νεάνισιν, ἐμπλόκιά σοι παράσχοι, τὰ τοῦ πνεύματος ἀίδια χαρίσματα, ἐπιβλήματα φωτοειδῆ, ἀφθαρσίαν ἀστράπτοντα, στεφανώσει σε τῷ τῆς δικαιοσύνης στεφάνῳ, χορεύσεις χορείαν ἄλυτον ἴσα καὶ ἀγγέλοις σὺν ἀγαλλιάσει ἀμηρύτῳ. Βλέπε λοιπόν, κυρία, καὶ πρόσεχε σαυτῇ καὶ τὰς νύμφας τοῦ Χριστοῦ φυλάττοιο περιμερίμνως· τρέφοις αὐτὰς τῷ καθαρῷ ἄρτῳ τῆς ὀρθοδοξίας, ποτίζοις τῷ νάματι τῆς εὐπραξίας, ὡς ἂν εἶεν πίονες, ὡραιοειδεῖς. πρὸς τὸ κάλλος τῆς ψυχῆς ὁ λόγος, οὗ καὶ ἐπιθυμεῖ, καθὼς ὑπισχνεῖται ὁ ἅγιος ∆αυίδ, Χριστὸς ὁ θεὸς ἡμῶν· φησὶ γάρ· ἄκουσον, θύγατερ, καὶ ἴδε καὶ κλῖνον τὸ οὖς σου καὶ ἐπιλάθου τοῦ λαοῦ σου καὶ τοῦ οἴκου τοῦ πατρός σου καὶ ἐπιθυμήσει ὁ βασιλεὺς τοῦ κάλλους σου· ὅτι αὐτός ἐστι Κύριός σου καὶ προσκυνήσεις αὐτῷ. ὁρᾷς ὅτι ἐν τῷ ἐπιλαθέσθαι ὑμᾶς, ἤγουν ἀποτάξασθαι γονεῦσιν, ἀδελφοῖς καὶ συγγενέσιν, φίλοις τε καὶ πᾶσι τοῖς κατὰ τὸν βίον, ἐπεθύμησεν ὑμῶν ὁ βασιλεὺς τοῦ κάλλους τῆς ψυχῆς εἰς νυμφίωσιν; τὸ δέ, "4αὐτός ἐστι Κύριός σου καὶ προσκυνήσεις αὐτῷ"5 γενήσεται ὑμῖν ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τῆς ἐπιφανείας αὐτοῦ. ὤ, ὤ, οἷον ἐφρονήσατε, ἐπιλαθόμεναι τῶν ἁπάντων· βαβαί, βαβαί, οἵου ἐπετύχετε νυμφίου· κροτήσατε χεῖρας, ἀλαλάξατε τῷ θεῷ ἐν φωνῇ ἀγαλλιάσεως, ὅτι ὑπὲρ πάσας τὰς ἐπὶ γῆς βασιλείας ὑψώθητε, ὑπὲρ