The Conferences of John Cassian.
II. Second Conference of Abbot Moses.
III. Conference of Abbot Paphnutius.
IV. Conference of Abbot Daniel.
V. Conference of Abbot Serapion.
VI. Conference of Abbot Theodore.
VII. First Conference of Abbot Serenus.
VIII. The Second Conference of Abbot Serenus.
IX. The First Conference of Abbot Isaac.
X. The Second Conference of Abbot Isaac.
The Conferences of John Cassian.
The Second Part of the Conferences
XII. The Second Conference of Abbot Chæremon.
XIII. The Third Conference of Abbot Chæremon.
XIV. The First Conference of Abbot Nesteros.
XV. The Second Conference of Abbot Nesteros.
XVI. The First Conference of Abbot Joseph.
XVII. The Second Conference of Abbot Joseph.
The Conferences of John Cassian.
The Third Part of the Conferences
XIX. Conference of Abbot John.
XX. Conference of Abbot Pinufius.
XXI. The First Conference of Abbot Theonas.
XXII. The Second Conference of Abbot Theonas.
XXIII. The Third Conference of Abbot Theonas.
A question on the end of penitence and the marks of satisfaction.
As your grand and splendid exposition of a doctrine new to us has opened out to us a more difficult road to the most glorious renunciation, and has removed the scales from our eyes, and shown to us its summit raised in the heavens, so are we proportionately cast down with a greater weight of despair. Since, when we measure its vastness against our puny strength, and compare the excessively humble character of our ignorance with the boundless height of virtue shown to us, we feel that we are so small that we not only cannot attain to it, but that we are sure to fall short in what we have. For as we are weighed down by the burden of excessive despair, we fall away somehow from the lowest depths to still lower ones. Accordingly there is one and only one support which can provide a cure for our wounds; viz., for us to learn something of the end of penitence and especially on the marks of satisfaction, that we may feel sure of the forgiveness of past sins, and so be spurred on to scale the heights of the perfection described above.