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In ascensionem Christi

OF GREGORY BISHOP OF NYSSA ON THAT WHICH IS CALLED BY THE LOCAL CUSTOM OF THE CAPPADOCIANS EPISOIZOMENE WHICH IS THE ASCENSION

OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST

How sweet a fellow traveler in human life is the prophet David, being found in all the ways of life and fittingly mixing with all spiritual ages and associating with every rank of those who are advancing; he plays with infants in God, he contends with men, he instructs youth, he supports old age, to all he becomes all things; the weapon of soldiers, the trainer of athletes, the wrestling school of those who exercise, the crown of victors, festivity at table, consolation at funerals. There is nothing in our life that does not share in this grace; what power of prayer does David not share? what festival's joy does the prophet not brighten? And indeed this can be seen now, that the festival, which was already great for us, the prophet has made greater through himself, fittingly contributing joy from the psalms for the occasion. For in one he bids you to become a sheep shepherded by God and lacking in no good thing, for whom the good shepherd becomes grass for pasture and water of rest and food and a tent and 9.324 a path and guidance and all things, fittingly apportioning his own grace for every need; through all of which he teaches the church, that you must first become a sheep of the good shepherd, led through good instruction to the divine pastures and springs of the teachings so as to be buried with him through baptism into death and not to fear such a death; for this is not death, but a shadow and image of death.

For if I walk, he says, in the midst of the shadow of death, I will not fear what is happening as evil, because you are with me. After this, having comforted with the staff of the Spirit (for the Comforter is the Spirit), he sets forth the mystical table prepared opposite the table of demons; for they were the ones afflicting the life of men through idolatry; opposite them is the table of the Spirit. Then he anoints the head with the oil of the Spirit and setting before him wine that gladdens the heart, he creates in the soul that sober intoxication, directing the thoughts from things temporal to the eternal; for he who has tasted of such intoxication exchanges the short-lived for the unending, prolonging his sojourn in the house of God for length of days. Having bestowed such things on us in one of the psalms, he rouses the soul to greater and more perfect joy in the next psalm, and, if it seems good, let us also set before you its meaning, summarizing it in a few words; The earth is the Lord's and the 9.325 fullness thereof. Why then are you astonished, O man, if our God appeared on the earth and conversed with men? For the earth is his creation, because it is also his handiwork. Therefore it is nothing new nor outside what is fitting for the master to come to his own things; for he does not come into a foreign world, but into the one which he himself established, he who founded the earth upon the seas and prepared it to be suitable for the passage of rivers. For what purpose then is the presence? In order that, having cast you out of the pits of sin, he might lead you to the mountain of the kingdom, using a life of virtue as a chariot for the ascent; for it is not possible to ascend to that mountain, unless one should travel with the virtues, being innocent in hands and not defiled by any evil deed, and pure in the

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In ascensionem Christi

ΓΡΗΓΟΡΙΟΥ ΕΠΙΣΚΟΠΟΥ ΝΥΣΣΗΣ ΕΙΣ ΤΗΝ ΛΕΓΟΜΕΝΗΝ ΤΩΙ ΕΠΙΧΩΡΙΩΙ ΤΩΝ ΚΑΠΠΑ∆ΟΚΩΝ ΕΘΕΙ ΕΠΙΣΩΙΖΟΜΕΝΗΝ ΗΤΙΣ ΕΣΤΙΝ Η ΑΝΑΛΗΨΙΣ

ΤΟΥ ΚΥΡΙΟΥ ΝΜΩΝ ΙΗΣΟΥ ΧΡΙΣΤΟΥ

Ὡς γλυκὺς συνέμπορος τοῦ ἀνθρωπίνου βίου ὁ προφήτης ∆αβὶδ ἐν πάσαις ταῖς ὁδοῖς τῆς ζωῆς εὑρισκόμενος καὶ πάσαις ταῖς πνευματικαῖς ἡλικίαις προσφόρως καταμιγνύμε νος καὶ παντὸς τάγματος τῶν προκοπτόντων συνεφαπτόμενος· τοῖς κατὰ θεὸν νηπίοις συμπαίζει, τοῖς ἀνδράσι συναγωνίζεται, παιδαγωγεῖ τὴν νεότητα, ὑποστηρίζει τὸ γῆρας, τοῖς πᾶσι πάντα γίνεται· στρατιωτῶν ὅπλον, ἀθλητῶν παιδοτρίβης, γυμναζομένων παλαίστρα, νικώντων στέφανος, ἐπιτραπέζιος εὐφροσύνη, ἐπικήδειος παραμυθία. οὐκ ἔστι τι τῶν κατὰ τὸν βίον ἡμῶν τῆς χάριτος ταύτης ἀμέτοχον· τίς προσευχῆς δύναμις, ἧς μὴ ∆αβὶδ συνεφάπτεται; τίς ἑορτῆς εὐφροσύνη μὴ τοῦ προφήτου ταύτην φαιδρύνοντος; ὃ δὴ καὶ νῦν ἔστιν ἰδεῖν, ὅτι καὶ ἄλλως μεγάλην ἡμῖν οὖσαν τὴν ἑορτὴν μείζονα δι' ἑαυτοῦ ὁ προφήτης ἐποίησε προσφόρως τῇ ὑποθέσει τὴν ἐκ τῶν ψαλμῶν συνεισενεγκὼν εὐφροσύνην. ἐν μὲν γὰρ τῷ ἑνὶ πρόβατόν σε κελεύει γενέσθαι παρὰ τοῦ θεοῦ ποιμαινό μενον καὶ οὐδενὸς τῶν ἀγαθῶν ὑστερούμενον, ᾧ καὶ πόα νομῆς καὶ ὕδωρ ἀναπαύσεως καὶ τροφὴ καὶ σκηνὴ καὶ 9.324 τρίβος καὶ ὁδηγία καὶ πάντα γίνεται ὁ ποιμὴν ὁ καλὸς πρὸς πᾶσαν χρείαν τὴν ἑαυτοῦ χάριν προσφόρως καταμερίζων· δι' ὧν ἁπάντων παιδεύει τὴν ἐκκλησίαν, ὅτι χρή σε πρόβατον πρῶτον γενέσθαι τοῦ καλοῦ ποιμένος διὰ τῆς ἀγαθῆς κατηχή σεως πρὸς τὰς θείας τῶν διδαγμάτων νομάς τε καὶ πηγὰς ὁδηγούμενον εἰς τὸ συνταφῆναι αὐτῷ διὰ τοῦ βαπτισμοῦ εἰς τὸν θάνατον καὶ μὴ φοβηθῆναι τὸν τοιοῦτον θάνατον· οὐ γὰρ θάνατος οὗτός ἐστιν, ἀλλὰ θανάτου σκιὰ καὶ ἐκτύπωμα.

Ἐὰν γὰρ πορευθῶ, φησίν, ἐν μέσῳ σκιᾶς θανάτου, οὐ φοβηθήσομαι ὡς κακὸν τὸ γινόμενον, ὅτι σὺ μετ' ἐμοῦ εἶ. μετὰ ταῦτα παρακαλέσας τῇ βακτηρίᾳ τοῦ πνεύματος (ὁ γὰρ παράκλητος τὸ πνεῦμά ἐστι) τὴν μυστικὴν προτίθησι τράπεζαν τὴν ἐξ ἐναντίου τῆς τῶν δαιμόνων τραπέζης ἑτοιμασθεῖσαν· ἐκεῖνοι γὰρ ἦσαν οἱ διὰ τῆς εἰδωλολατρίας τὴν ζωὴν τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐκθλίβοντες· ὧν ἐξ ἐναντίου ἡ τοῦ πνεύματος τράπεζα. εἶτα μυρίζει τὴν κεφαλὴν τῷ ἐλαίῳ τοῦ πνεύματος καὶ προθεὶς αὐτῷ οἶνον τὸν τὴν καρδίαν εὐφραίνοντα τὴν νήφουσαν ἐκείνην μέθην ἐμποιεῖ τῇ ψυχῇ στήσας τοὺς λογισμοὺς ἀπὸ τῶν προσκαίρων πρὸς τὸ ἀίδιον· ὁ γὰρ τῆς τοιαύτης γευσάμενος μέθης διαμείβεται τοῦ ὠκυμόρου τὸ ἀτελεύτητον εἰς μακρότητα ἡμερῶν τὴν ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ τοῦ θεοῦ διαγωγὴν παρατείνων. Τοιαῦτα ἡμῖν ἐν τῷ ἑνὶ τῶν ψαλμῶν χαρισάμενος πρὸς μείζονα καὶ τελεωτέραν εὐφροσύνην ἐν τῷ ἑξῆς ψαλμῷ τὴν ψυχὴν ἐπεγείρει, καὶ, εἰ δοκεῖ, καὶ τούτου τὴν διάνοιαν ὑμῖν παραθώμεθα δι' ὀλίγων ἐπιτεμόμενοι· Τοῦ κυρίου ἡ γῆ καὶ τὸ 9.325 πλήρωμα αὐτῆς. τί οὖν ξενίζῃ, ὦ ἄνθρωπε, εἰ ὁ θεὸς ἡμῶν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς ὤφθη καὶ τοῖς ἀνθρώποις συνανεστράφη; κτίσμα γὰρ ἐκείνου ἡ γῆ, διότι καὶ ποίημα. οὐκοῦν οὐδὲν καινὸν οὐδὲ ἔξω τοῦ πρέποντος τὸ εἰς τὰ ἴδια ἐλθεῖν τὸν δεσπότην· οὐ γὰρ ἐν ἀλλοτρίῳ γίνεται κόσμῳ, ἀλλ' ὃν αὐτὸς συνεστήσατο ὁ ἐπὶ θαλασσῶν θεμελιώσας τὴν γῆν καὶ πρὸς τὴν τῶν ποταμῶν δίοδον εὔθετον αὐτὴν εἶναι παρασκευάσας. ὑπὲρ τίνος οὖν ἡ παρουσία; ἵνα σε τῶν βαράθρων τῆς ἁμαρτίας ἐκβαλὼν ἐπὶ τὸ ὄρος ἀγάγῃ τῆς βασιλείας ὀχήματι πρὸς τὴν ἄνοδον τῇ κατ' ἀρετὴν πολιτείᾳ χρησάμενον· οὐ γὰρ ἔστιν ἀνελθεῖν ἐπὶ τὸ ὄρος ἐκεῖνο, εἰ μή <τις> ταῖς ἀρεταῖς συνοδεύσειε ταῖς μὲν χερσὶν ἀθῷος γενόμενος καὶ μηδεμιᾷ πονηρᾷ πράξει ῥυπούμενος, καθαρὸς δὲ τῇ