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De remissione peccatorum

On the saying, "Whatever you bind on earth will be bound also in heaven;" and on the parable of the one hundred sheep; and on the saying of the evangelist, "If two agree," and so on; and on the saying, "How many times shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him?"

60.759 A spring of water, having a single nature, bestows the remedy for thirst on many and various living creatures. For herds of cattle and flocks of sheep, running down to it, receive drink, and a company of quadrupeds and various kinds of roaming beasts, hastening to it, draw water from there and numerous multitudes of birds, flying down to it and drawing up the water, from there quench the burning heat of thirst. And not only does the spring fulfill the need of irrational creatures, but it also sprouts forth from its depths a rich grace of the place for rational men; and every nature of reptiles and birds and quadrupeds and rational men, drawing water from the one spring, is satisfied. Such is the teaching of the divine Scriptures, beloved, being one. For since it has its emanation from the one wisdom of God, it makes wise the many and various hearts of men. And from there teachers are made wise, disciples are put in order, the Churches are perfumed, the thirsty are given drink, the darkened are enlightened. And that these things are so, it is easy to learn the matter from the Gospel just read to us.

For what did the Lord say? Truly I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound also in heaven. It is one voice, and it is divided in many ways for the need and benefit of each; it is one voice, and it suffices for old and young, for women and virgins and men, for disciples and teachers. Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven. He has given you the authority to bind and to loose. you have bound yourself with the chain of avarice, loose yourself with the commandment of love for the poor; you have bound yourself with the gadfly of pleasures, loose yourself with temperance; you have bound yourself with the false belief of Eunomius, loose yourself with the piety of orthodoxy. Teachers, bind the teachings of Eunomius and Arius and Marathonius, and loose for us the meanings of the Father and Son and Holy Spirit in the Gospels; bind the demons who wage war against the faithful with your supplications to God, and loose those from the nations who are converting in baptism, breaking the chains of their sins; bind by excommunication those who have sinned after baptism, and loose them again when they repent, receiving them as brothers; for the word is true: Whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. For the apostles also did this. Paul once bound the man who committed fornication in Corinth, and again he loosed him when he repented from the heart; Peter also bound the one who after baptism wished to acquire the gift of God through money, and again he loosed him when he fell before him from the heart. Furthermore, they bound many who sinned without repentance, and they loosed others who repented. Peter bound Ananias with Sapphira for tempting the Spirit of the Lord, and he loosed the pangs of death for Tabitha, raising her from the dead; he loosed Cornelius the centurion who believed, and he bound Simon the magician in Rome who was trifling with magic; and Paul bound Elymas the magician, blinding him by a word, and he loosed the servant girl from the spirit of python her

1

De remissione peccatorum

Εἰς τὸ, "Ὅσα ἐὰν δήσητε ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, ἔσται δεδεμένα καὶ ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ·" καὶ περὶ τῆς παραβολῆς τῶν ἑκατὸν προβάτων· καὶ εἰς τὸ ῥητὸν τοῦ εὐαγγελιστοῦ, "Ἐὰν δύο συμφωνήσωσι," καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς· καὶ εἰς τὸ, "Ποσάκις ἐὰν ἁμαρτήσῃ εἰς ἐμὲ ὁ ἀδελφός μου, ἀφήσω αὐτῷ;"

60.759 Μίαν ἔχουσα ἡ πηγὴ τοῦ ὕδατος τὴν φύσιν, πολλοῖς καὶ διαφόροις ἐμψύχοις

τὸ ἴαμα τῆς δίψης χαρίζεται. Καὶ γὰρ βουκόλια καὶ ποιμνίων ἀγέλαι πρὸς αὐτὴν κατατρέχουσαι, ποτὸν λαμβάνουσι, καὶ τετραπόδων σύνοδος καὶ κυκλοφόρων θηρίων ποικιλόμορφα γένη πρὸς αὐτὴν ἐπειγόμενα, ἐκεῖθεν ὑδρεύονται καὶ πετεινῶν πολυάριθμα πλήθη πρὸς αὐτὴν καθιπτάμενα καὶ τὸ ὕδωρ ἀντλοῦντα, τοῦ δίψους τὸν καύσωνα ἐκεῖθεν ἐκλύουσι. Καὶ οὐ μόνον ἡ πηγὴ τὴν τῶν ἀλόγων χρείαν πληροῖ, ἀλλὰ γὰρ καὶ λογικῶν ἀνθρώπων τὴν τοῦ τόπου πλουσίαν χάριν ἐκ λαγόνων βλαστάνει· καὶ πᾶσα φύσις ἑρπετῶν καὶ πετεινῶν καὶ τετραπόδων καὶ λογικῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐκ μιᾶς πηγῆς ἀντλοῦντα τὸ ὕδωρ χορτάζεται. Τοιαύτη ἐστὶν ἡ τῶν θείων Γραφῶν διδασκαλία, ἀγαπητοὶ, μία τυγχάνουσα. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ καὶ ἐκ μιᾶς τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ σοφίας τὴν ἀπόῤῥροιαν ἔχει, πολλὰς δὴ καὶ διαφόρους τῶν ἀνθρώπων καρδίας σοφίζει. Καὶ ἐκεῖθεν οἱ διδάσκαλοι σοφίζονται, οἱ μαθηταὶ ῥυθμίζονται, αἱ Ἐκκλησίαι μυρίζονται, οἱ διψῶντες ποτίζονται, οἱ ἐσκοτισμένοι φωτίζονται. Ὅτι δὲ ταῦτα οὕτως ἔχει, ἐκ τοῦ ἀρτίως ἡμῖν ἀναγνωσθέντος Εὐαγγελίου ῥᾴδιόν ἐστι τὸ πρᾶγμα μαθεῖν.

Τί γὰρ ἔλεγεν ὁ Κύριος; Ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν, ὅσα ἐὰν δήσητε ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, ἔσται δεδεμένα καὶ ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ. Μία ἐστὶν ἡ φωνὴ, καὶ πολυσχεδῶς πρὸς τὴν ἑκάστου χρείαν καὶ ὠφέλειαν μεριζομένη· μία ἐστὶν ἡ φωνὴ, καὶ ἀρτίζει γέρουσι καὶ νεωτέροις, καὶ γυναιξὶ καὶ παρθένοις καὶ ἀνδράσι, καὶ μαθηταῖς καὶ διδασκάλοις. Ὅσα ἐὰν δήσητε ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, ἔσται δεδεμένα ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ. Σοὶ δέδωκε τὴν ἐξουσίαν τοῦ δεσμεῖν καὶ λύειν· σαυτὸν ἔδησας τῇ σειρᾷ τῆς φιλαργυρίας, σαυτὸν λῦσον τῇ ἐντολῇ τῆς φιλοπτωχίας· σαυτὸν ἔδησας τῷ οἴστρῳ τῶν ἡδονῶν, σαυτὸν λῦσον τῇ σωφροσύνῃ· σαυτὸν ἔδησας τῇ Εὐνομίου κακοπιστίᾳ, σαυτὸν λῦσον τῇ τῆς ὀρθοδοξίας εὐσεβείᾳ. Οἱ διδάσκαλοι, δήσατε τὰ Εὐνομίου καὶ Ἀρείου καὶ Μαραθωνίου μαθήματα, καὶ λύσατε ἡμῖν τὰ Πατρὸς καὶ Υἱοῦ καὶ ἁγίου Πνεύματος ἐν Εὐαγγελίοις νοήματα· δήσατε τοὺς κατὰ τῶν πιστῶν στρατευομένους δαίμονας ταῖς πρὸς Θεὸν ὑμῶν ἱκεσίαις, καὶ λύσατε τοὺς ἐξ ἐθνῶν ἐπιστρέφοντας ἐν τῷ βαπτίσματι, τὰς σειρὰς τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων αὐτῶν διαῤῥήσσοντες· δήσατε ἀφορισμῷ τοὺς μετὰ τὸ βάπτισμα ἁμαρτήσαντας, καὶ λύσατε αὐτοὺς πάλιν μετανοοῦντας ὡς ἀδελφοὺς αὐτοὺς προσδεχόμενοι· ἀληθὴς γάρ ἐστιν ὁ λόγος· Ὅσα ἂν λύσητε ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, ἔσται λελυμένα ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ. Τοῦτο γὰρ καὶ οἱ ἀπόστολοι ἐποίουν. Ἔδησέ ποτε Παῦλος τὸν ἐν Κορίνθῳ πορνεύσαντα, καὶ πάλιν ἔλυσεν αὐτὸν ἐκ καρδίας μετανοήσαντα· ἔδησε καὶ Πέτρος τὸν μετὰ τὸ βάπτισμα βουληθέντα διὰ χρημάτων κτήσασθαι τὴν δωρεὰν τοῦ Θεοῦ, καὶ πάλιν ἔλυσεν αὐτὸν ἐκ καρδίας αὐτῷ προσπεσόντα. Λοιπὸν δὲ πολλοὺς καὶ ἀμετανόητα ἁμαρτήσαντας ἔδησαν, ἄλλους δὲ μετανοήσαντας ἔλυσαν. Ἔδησε Πέτρος Ἀνανίαν σὺν Σαπφείρῃ πειράζοντα τὸ Πνεῦμα Κυρίου, καὶ ἔλυσε τῆς Ταβιθᾶ τὰς ὠδῖνας τοῦ θανάτου, ἐκ νεκρῶν αὐτὴν ἀναστήσας· ἔλυσε Κορνήλιον τὸν ἑκατόνταρχον πιστεύσαντα, καὶ ἔδησε Σίμωνα τὸν μάγον ἐν Ῥώμῃ ταῖς μαγείαις ἐμπαίζοντα· ἔδησε καὶ Παῦλος Ἐλύμαν τὸν μάγον διὰ λόγου αὐτὸν τυφλώσας, καὶ ἔλυσε τὴν παιδίσκην τοῦ πυθωνίου δαίμονος αὐτὴν