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Sermo de contubernalibus

A DISCOURSE OF OUR FATHER AMONG THE SAINTS, BASIL THE GREAT, CONCERNING WOMEN LIVING WITH MEN.

Strengthened by the only-begotten Son of God, Christ our Lord, through the Holy Spirit, by the prayers of the holy servants of Christ, let us also begin to speak words of piety and chastity. Let us utter words of grace and truth, being strengthened by great grace. Opening our mouth in Christ, let us bring forth a certain small treasure laid up in our heart, small indeed in its perceptible substance, but great in its intelligible nature; and let us put forward a stater of pure gold, and having purified it with a sincere mind, as if in a crucible, let us display it most brilliantly to all of you. For the mind is willing, and 30.813 the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.

For I would wish it were possible for me, standing upon the highest peaks, to trumpet as if through the mouth, and like thunder to send forth over the whole inhabited world the words of chastity, so that they might be a testimony to all who corrupt the truth. But the thing is impossible; for I am a man of a short life, and of humble age, and small in voice, and otherwise humble in soul, defiled with many sins. But even if I raise my voice on high like thunder, and shout great things, I shall not be heard. For Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, who fixed the heavens like a vault, and founded the earth upon the waters, and made firm the sea; He who prepared fire, and brimstone, and Gehenna, and fear, and the terror of eternal judgments for sinners, this one, crying out and commanding through the Gospels, is disobeyed. And again, the holy Apostles, perfect disciples of Christ, and named sons of thunder, writing and exhorting through epistles are despised; but neither the holy prophets of God, nor the Law, nor men admonishing them cause shame; and who else then will be able to correct so great a harsh and savage matter? Since then a wound has come upon the whole world, and it seems to me fitting to apply many words like cauteries to the affliction. For the disease has been poured out, and has taken hold of very many, that I may not say all, and like a most dark mist has seized the vision of the mind of the many.

But I shall speak with boldness, kindling a lamp of piety through the mouth with holy words, and relating venerable examples of virtuous ways, not fearing man, but having before my eyes the one who judges the living and the dead without respect of persons, and not wishing to become a partaker with those caught in the evil net, so that the word, having spread out its rays like the sun, may dissolve the darkness of the mind of those who listen with a pure heart, and may stop the passion with its own flashes. For the love of money is the root of all evils, says the divine Apostle; truly a root bearing many branches of wickedness, through which all things in a wicked life are accomplished. But the root of all evils is the love of women, and the leader of destruction, I mean the madness for beloved women, a root sprouting destruction, and blossoming into madness. For it happens to be Judaic, brought over from Sodom, inasmuch as it possesses a certain insidious and fabricated fantasy of outwardly feigned love. And now bring forth for me into the midst that saying of the Apostle, which says: Do we not have authority to take along a sister as a wife, as do the other

1

Sermo de contubernalibus

ΤΟΥ ΕΝ ΑΓΙΟΙΣ ΠΑΤΡΟΣ ΗΜΩΝ ΒΑΣΙΛΕΙΟΥ ΤΟΥ ΜΕΓΑΛΟΥ ΛΟΓΟΣ ΠΕΡΙ ΤΩΝ ΣΥΝΕΙΣΑΚΤΩΝ.

Ἀρξώμεθα καὶ ἡμεῖς λαλῆσαι, ταῖς τῶν ἁγίων Χριστοῦ δούλων εὐχαῖς δι'

ἁγίου Πνεύματος ὑπὸ τοῦ μονογενοῦς τοῦ Θεοῦ Υἱοῦ Χριστοῦ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν ἐνδυναμούμενοι, ῥήματα εὐσεβείας καὶ σωφροσύνης. Ἀποφθεγξώμεθα λόγους χάριτος καὶ ἀληθείας ὑπὸ τῆς μεγάλης ἐνδυναμούμενοι χάριτος. Ἀνοίξαντες τὸ στόμα ἐν Χριστῷ προκομίσωμεν θησαυρόν τινα μικρὸν ἐναποκείμενον τῇ καρδίᾳ ἡμῶν, μικρὸν μὲν τῇ αἰσθητῇ ὑποστάσει, μέγαν δὲ τῇ νοητῇ φύσει· καὶ προβάλωμεν χρυσίου καθαροῦ στατῆρα, καὶ καθαρίσαντες τοῦτον, ὥσπερ ἐν χωνευτηρίῳ, τῷ εἰλικρινεῖ φρονήματι, τηλαυγέστατον πᾶσιν ὑμῖν ἐπιδείξωμεν. Πρόθυμος γὰρ ὁ νοῦς, καὶ 30.813 τὸ πνεῦμα πρόθυμον, ἀσθενὴς δὲ ἡ σάρξ.

Ἤθελον γὰρ εἶναι δυνατὸν ὑπὲρ τῶν ὑπερτάτων ἀκρωτηρίων ἐπιστάντα σαλπίσαι με ὥσπερ διὰ τοῦ στόματος, καὶ βροντῆς δίκην κατὰ πάσης ἐξαποστεῖλαι τῆς οἰκουμένης τὰ τῆς σωφροσύνης ῥήματα, ὅπως εἰς μαρτυρίαν ἔσονται πᾶσι τοῖς παραφθείρουσι τὴν ἀλήθειαν. Ἀλλ' ἀδύνατον τὸ πρᾶγμα· ἄν θρωπος γάρ εἰμι ὀλιγόβιος, καὶ εὐτελὴς μὲν τὴν ἡλικίαν, μικρὸς δὲ τὴν φωνὴν, καὶ ἄλλως δὲ τα πεινὸς τὴν ψυχὴν, πολλαῖς ἁμαρτίαις ἐμπεφυρμένος. Ἀλλὰ κἂν βροντῆς δίκην εἰς ὕψος ἐπάρω τὴν φωνὴν, καὶ βοήσω μεγάλα, οὐκ ἀκουσθήσομαι. Χριστὸς γὰρ ὁ μονογενὴς τοῦ Θεοῦ Υἱὸς, ὁ πήξας τοὺς οὐρανοὺς ὡσεὶ καμάραν, καὶ θεμελιώσας τὴν γῆν ἐπὶ τῶν ὑδάτων, καὶ στερεώσας τὴν θάλασσαν· ὁ πῦρ, καὶ θεῖον, καὶ γέενναν, καὶ φόβον, καὶ τρόμον αἰωνίων κριτηρίων ἑτοιμάσας τοῖς ἁμαρτά νουσιν, οὗτος δι' Εὐαγγελίων βοῶν καὶ παραγγέλλων παρακούεται. Ἀπόστολοι δ' αὖ πάλιν ἅγιοι, τέλειοι τοῦ Χριστοῦ μαθηταὶ, καὶ υἱοὶ βροντῆς ὀνο μασθέντες, δι' ἐπιστολῶν γράφοντες καὶ παρακαλοῦντες καταφρονοῦνται· ἀλλ' οὔτε προφῆται ἅγιοι τοῦ Θεοῦ, οὔτε νόμος, οὔτε ἄνθρωποι νουθετοῦντες ἐντρέπουσι· καὶ τίς ἄλλος δυνήσεται ἄρα τὸ τηλικοῦτον ἀπηνὲς διορθώσασθαι καὶ ἀνήμερον πρᾶγμα; Ὅτε λοιπὸν τραῦμα κατὰ πάσης γέγονε τῆς οἰκουμένης, καί μοι δοκεῖ πολλοὺς λόγους καυτήρων δίκην προσάπτειν τῷ πάθει. Ἐπικέχυται γὰρ τὸ νόσημα, καὶ κεκράτηκε πλείστων, ἵνα μὴ πάντων λέγω, καὶ ὥσπερ ἀχλὺς σκοτεινοτάτη ἐπέσχε τῶν πολλῶν τὸ βλεπτικὸν τῆς διανοίας.

Ἐγὼ δὲ ἐρῶ μετὰ παῤῥησίας, λαμπάδα εὐσεβείας διὰ στόματος ῥήμασιν ἁγίοις ἐξάπτων, καὶ σεμνὰ τρόπων ἀρετῆς παραδείγματα διηγούμενος, μὴ ἄνθρωπον εὐλαβούμενος, ἀλλὰ πρὸ ὀφθαλμῶν ἔχων τὸν ἀπροσωπολήπτως κρίνοντα ζῶντας καὶ νεκροὺς, καὶ οὐ βουλό μενος κοινωνὸς γενέσθαι τῶν ἐν τῷ κακῷ δικτύῳ σαγηνευθέντων, ὅπως δίκην ἡλίου ὁ λόγος τὰς ἀκτῖνας ἐκπετάσας, διαλύσῃ τὸ ζοφῶδες τῆς διανοίας τῶν εἰσακουόντων ἐκ καθαρᾶς καρδίας, καὶ τὸ πάθος παύσῃ ταῖς αὑτοῦ μαρμαρυγαῖς. Ῥίζα γὰρ πάντων τῶν κακῶν ἡ φιλαργυρία, φησὶν ὁ θεῖος Ἀπόστολος· ἀληθῶς ῥίζα πολλοὺς κλάδους πονηρίας ἐκφέρουσα, δι' ἣν τὰ πάντα ἐν τῷ πονηρῷ βίῳ ἐπιτελεῖται. Ῥίζα δὲ πάντων τῶν κακῶν ἡ φιλογυνία, καὶ ἡγεμὼν τῆς ἀπωλείας, ἡ τῶν ἀγαπητρίδων λέγω δὴ μανία, ῥίζα ἀπώλειαν βλαστάνουσα, καὶ ἐξανθοῦσα μανίαν. Ἰουδαϊκὴ γὰρ τυγχάνει ἐκ Σοδόμων μετενεχθεῖσα, καθότι ὕπουλόν τινα καὶ πεποιημένην τῆς ἔξωθεν ἐπιπλάστου ἀγάπης τὴν φαντασίαν κέκτηται. Καί μοι λαβὼν κόμιζε λοιπὸν εἰς μέσον τὸ τοῦ Ἀποστόλου λόγιον ἐκεῖνο, τὸ φάσκον· Μὴ οὐκ ἔχομεν ἐξουσίαν ἀδελφὴν γυναῖκα περιάγειν, ὡς καὶ οἱ λοιποὶ