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In paralyticum demissum per tectum

HOMILY On the paralytic let down through the roof, that he is not the one who lay by the pool in John; and concerning the Son's equality with the Father.

51.47 1. When we lately came upon the paralytic lying on his bed by the pool, we found a great and mighty treasure, not by digging up the earth, but 51.48.40 by excavating his mind; we found a treasure containing not silver and gold and precious stones, but endurance and wisdom and patience 51.49 and great hope in God, which is more precious than all gold and every abundance. For sensible wealth is exposed to the plots of robbers, and the mouths of slanderers, and the hands of burglars, and the villainies of servants; and when it escapes all these things, then it often brings the greatest destruction upon its possessors, stirring up the eyes of the envious, and from this begetting countless tempests. But spiritual wealth has escaped all these snares, and is superior to all such insolence, mocking robbers and burglars and the envious and slanderers and death itself. For it is not separated from its possessor by death, but then especially does its possession become more secure for those who have it, and it journeys with them, and migrates with them to the life to come, and becomes a wonderful advocate for those with whom it departs thither, and renders the judge propitious to them. This wealth we also have found in great abundance buried in the soul of the paralytic. And you are witnesses, who have drawn from it with much eagerness, yet without exhausting it. For such is the nature of spiritual wealth; it imitates the flowing of waters, or rather, it even surpasses their abundance, abounding then the more, when it has many drawing from it. For entering into the soul of each one, it is not divided, nor diminished, but coming whole to each one it remains unspent forever, never able to fail; which indeed also happened then. For though so many have fallen upon the treasure, and all have drawn from there according to their ability; and what shall I say about you, when from that time until the present day, having made countless people wealthy, it remains in its own perfection? Let us not, therefore, grow weary of this spiritual wealth; but as much as is possible let us now also draw from it, and let us see the philanthropic Master, let us see the patient servant. For indeed, struggling for thirty-eight years with an incurable illness and being continually scourged, he was not dismayed, he did not utter a blasphemous word, he did not accuse his Maker, but he bore that calamity nobly and with much gentleness. And from where is this clear? you say. For Scripture has not clearly taught us anything about his former life, but it has made clear that he was in his infirmity for thirty-eight years; but that he was not dismayed, nor vexed, nor despondent, this it has not added. And yet it did make this clear too, if one would pay close attention, and not cursorily, nor simply. For when you hear that to Christ standing over him, and not being known, but thought to be a mere man, he spoke with so much gentleness, you will also be able to behold his previous wisdom. For when He said to him, 'Do you want to be made well?' he said nothing such as would have been likely, such as, 'You see me lying paralyzed for so long a time, and you ask if I want to be made well? Have you come to trample on my woes, to reproach, and to mock, and to ridicule my misfortune?' Nothing of the sort

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In paralyticum demissum per tectum

ΟΜΙΛΙΑ Εἰς τὸν παραλυτικὸν διὰ τῆς στέγης χαλασθέντα, ὅτι οὐκ αὐτός ἐστιν ὁ παρὰ τῷ Ἰωάννῃ κείμενος· καὶ περὶ τῆς τοῦ Υἱοῦ πρὸς τὸν

Πατέρα ἰσότητος.

51.47 αʹ. Περιτυχόντες πρῴην τῷ παραλυτικῷ περὶ τὴν κολυμβήθραν ἐπὶ τῆς κλίνης κειμένῳ, πολὺν καὶ μέγαν εὑρήκαμεν θησαυρὸν, οὐχὶ γῆν διορύξαντες, ἀλλὰ 51.48.40 τὴν διάνοιαν αὐτοῦ διασκάψαντες· εὑρήκαμεν θησαυρὸν οὐχὶ ἀργύριον ἔχοντα καὶ χρυσίον καὶ λίθους τιμίους, ἀλλὰ καρτερίαν καὶ φιλοσοφίαν καὶ ὑπομονὴν 51.49 καὶ πολλὴν τὴν πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν ἐλπίδα, ἣ παντὸς χρυσίου καὶ πάσης εὐπορίας ἐστὶ τιμιωτέρα. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ αἰσθητὸς πλοῦτος καὶ λῃστῶν ἐπιβουλαῖς πρόκειται, καὶ συκοφαντῶν στόμασι, καὶ τοιχωρύχων χερσὶ καὶ οἰκετῶν κακουργίαις, καὶ ὅταν ἅπαντα ταῦτα διαφύγῃ, τότε τοῖς κεκτημένοις μέγιστον ἐπάγει πολλάκις τὸν ὄλεθρον, βασκάνων ὀφθαλμοὺς διεγείρων, καὶ μυρίους ἐκ τούτου τίκτων χειμῶνας. Ὁ δὲ πνευματικὸς πλοῦτος ἁπάσας ταύτας διέφυγε τὰς λαβὰς, καὶ πάσης ἐπηρείας ἐστὶν ἀνώτερος τοιαύτης, καὶ λῃστῶν καὶ τοιχωρύχων καὶ βασκάνων καὶ συκοφαντῶν καὶ αὐτοῦ καταγελῶν τοῦ θανάτου. Οὐδὲ γὰρ θανάτῳ διαζεύγνυται τοῦ κεκτημένου, ἀλλὰ τότε μάλιστα ἀσφαλεστέρα ἡ κτῆσις αὐτοῦ τοῖς ἔχουσι γίνεται, καὶ συναποδημεῖ, καὶ συμμεθίσταται πρὸς τὴν μέλλουσαν ζωὴν, καὶ συνήγορος γίνεται θαυμαστὸς, οἷς ἂν ἐκεῖ συναπέλθῃ, καὶ ἵλεω καθίστησιν αὐτοῖς τὸν δικάζοντα. Τοῦτον καὶ ἡμεῖς τὸν πλοῦτον μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς δαψιλείας εὑρήκαμεν ἐν τῇ τοῦ παραλυτικοῦ κατορωρυγμένον ψυχῇ. Καὶ μάρτυρες ὑμεῖς οἱ μετὰ πολλῆς αὐτὸν ἐξαντλήσαντες τῆς προθυμίας, οὐ κενώσαντες δέ. Τοιαύτη γὰρ ἡ τοῦ πνευματικοῦ πλούτου φύσις· τὰς τῶν ὑδάτων ἐπιῤῥοίας μιμεῖται, μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ ἐκείνων νικᾷ τὴν ἀφθονίαν, τότε πλεονάζουσα μᾶλλον, ὅταν πολλοὺς ἔχῃ τοὺς ἀρυομένους αὐτήν. Εἰς γὰρ τὴν ἑκάστου ψυχὴν εἰσιὼν, οὐ μερίζεται, οὐδὲ ἐλαττοῦται, ἀλλ' ὁλόκληρος ἑκάστῳ παραγινόμενος ἀνάλωτος μένει διηνεκῶς, οὐδέποτε ἐπιλείπειν δυνάμενος· ὃ δὴ καὶ τότε συνέβαινε. Τοσούτων γὰρ ἐπιπεσόντων τῷ θησαυρῷ, καὶ πάντων τὰ κατὰ δύναμιν ἀρυομένων ἐκεῖθεν· καὶ τί λέγω περὶ ὑμῶν, ὅπου γε ἐξ ἐκείνου τοῦ χρόνου μέχρι τῆς παρούσης ἡμέρας μυρίους ποιήσας εὐπόρους, ἐπὶ τῆς οἰκείας τελειότητος μένει; Μὴ τοίνυν ἀποκάμωμεν πρὸς τὴν πνευματικὴν ταύτην εὐπορίαν· ἀλλ' ὅσον δυνατὸν καὶ νῦν ἐξαντλήσωμεν, καὶ ἴδωμεν φιλάνθρωπον ∆εσπότην, ἴδωμεν καρτερικὸν οἰκέτην. Τριάκοντα γοῦν καὶ ὀκτὼ ἔτη ἀῤῥωστίᾳ παλαίων ἀνιάτῳ καὶ μαστιζόμενος διηνεκῶς, οὐκ ἐδυσχέρανεν, οὐκ ἀφῆκε ῥῆμα βλάσφημον, οὐ κατηγόρησε τοῦ πεποιηκότος, ἀλλὰ γενναίως καὶ μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς ἐπιεικείας τὴν συμφορὰν ἔφερεν ἐκείνην. Καὶ πόθεν τοῦτο δῆλον; φησίν· οὐδὲν γὰρ περὶ τῆς ἄνω ζωῆς αὐτοῦ σαφῶς ἡμᾶς ἐδίδαξεν ἡ Γραφὴ, ἀλλ' ὅτι μὲν τριάκοντα ὀκτὼ ἔτη εἶχεν ἐν τῇ ἀσθενείᾳ αὐτοῦ, δῆλον ἐποίησεν· ὅτι δὲ οὐκ ἐδυσχέρανεν, οὐδὲ ἠγανάκτησεν, οὐδὲ ἀπεδυσπέτησε, τοῦτο οὐκέτι προσέθηκεν. Καὶ μὴν καὶ τοῦτο δῆλον ἐποίησεν, εἴ τις ἀκριβῶς προσέχοι, καὶ μὴ παρέργως, μηδὲ ἁπλῶς. Ὅταν γὰρ ἀκούσῃς ὅτι ἐπιστάντι Χριστῷ καὶ οὐκ ὄντι γνωρίμῳ, ἀλλ' ἀνθρώπῳ νομιζομένῳ ψιλῷ, μετὰ τοσαύτης ἐπιεικείας διελέγετο αὐτῷ, καὶ τὴν ἔμπροσθεν αὐτοῦ φιλοσοφίαν δυνήσῃ θεάσασθαι. Εἰπόντι γὰρ αὐτῷ, Θέλεις ὑγιὴς γενέσθαι; οὐδὲν εἶπεν οἷον εἰκὸς ἦν, ὅτι Ὁρᾷς με παραλελυμένον χρόνον τοσοῦτον κατακείμενον, καὶ ἐρωτᾷς εἰ βούλομαι γενέσθαι ὑγιής; ἐπεμβῆναί μου τοῖς κακοῖς ἦλθες, ὀνειδίσαι, καὶ καταγελάσαι, καὶ κωμῳδῆσαι τὴν συμφοράν; Οὐδὲν τοιοῦτον