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In pentecosten Sermo 2

52.807 The grace of the Spirit has come upon us; for true is he who promised the gift of the

Spirit. The Paraclete has visited, who was proclaimed by the Lord Christ; for he who foretold the arrival is true, not a servant foretelling the presence of a servant, but a Lord becoming the announcer of a Lord of equal honor, and a good teacher, yielding to a good teacher, or rather, being present with one present, and ascending with one ascending, and descending with one coming. For the grace of the Trinity is indivisible; and neither did he who ascended depart, nor was he who came absent. But God the Word ascended as man, and is present; and the Paraclete descended, and did not leave the heavens; but he reigns with the Father, and illuminates the earth, and fulfilled the economy, and sent kinds of tongues to the apostles; and suddenly a great voice was heard, and the sound of a violent wind was made, and the arrival of the Spirit imitated the form of thunder; for it came upon the sons of thunder.

And there appeared to them tongues as of fire, being distributed; and the appearance was fearful, but what was happening was desirable; a flame settling upon, and not burning, a fire sitting upon, and not consuming; a fire bestowing heavenly wisdom, a fire being divided into countless tongues, a fire being cut into myriad forms of words; a flame teaching the fishermen to be wise, and making the leather-worker an orator. But the sophists were nothing of the sort. For they were teachers of some one nation, but these have become instructors of the whole world. And a Galilean man was speaking the language of the Medes, and he knew that of the Parthians, and was not ignorant of that of the Elamites; but he had on his mouth the images of every voice. And none of their listeners considered him a barbarian, nor did he shun the words of his hearing as illegitimate; but he was heard as a citizen of every nation, carrying about with him the tongue of the whole world, and we have received this as the first fruit of piety.

For at the construction of the tower the voices were divided, and men did not know each other's tongues. For it was necessary 52.808 that the concord of the God-fighting counsel be constrained by ignorance of words, and that those who had acted together wickedly be separated by the change of tongue, and by a word to have experience of their irrational undertakings, and neither for the speaker to speak, nor for the hearer to understand, nor to waste their time in vain. For what is the profit of your folly? What is the end of your mighty work? Why do you try to grasp the incomprehensible? Why do you strive to seize heaven, you who are not worthy even to enjoy the earth? Why do you discourse on high things, you who do not even listen to your neighbor's voice? I divide your voice, and I put an end to the deed, not fearing your ascent, nor being afraid for my kingdom, but caring for you who are laboring and toiling in vain. For neither is a building of stones, nor a tower put together by many hands, designed to lead up to heaven, but chariots of the knowledge of God, and many of righteousness, and a life purer than light, and the wings of virtue lead up to that road. The divided tongue indeed made them cease from their boldness, as God governed this wisely and at the same time philanthropically.

But what he took from them as evil ones, this he bestowed on the apostles as good ones, and he who through the tongue punished the impious, through the tongue glorified the saints; and the ministers of the word receive the forms of the word, not having enjoyed it for the display of grace, but having received the gift for a need. For it was necessary for the instructors of the world to know the things of the world. For a teacher is weak who is unclear to his students. But as of such great mysteries

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In pentecosten Sermo 2

52.807 Ἐπεφοίτησεν ἡ τοῦ Πνεύματος χάρις· ἀληθὴς γὰρ ὁ τὴν δωρεὰν τοῦ

Πνεύματος ὑποσχόμενος. Ἐπεδήμησεν ὁ Παράκλητος ὁ παρὰ τοῦ ∆εσπότου Χριστοῦ κηρυττόμενος· ἀψευδὴς γὰρ ὁ τὴν ἄφιξιν προμηνύσας, οὐ δοῦλος δούλου παρουσίαν προλέγων, ἀλλὰ ∆εσπότης ὁμοτίμου ∆εσπότου γενόμενος μηνυτὴς, καὶ διδάσκαλος ἀγαθὸς, ἀγαθῷ παραχωρῶν διδασκάλῳ, μᾶλλον δὲ συμπαρόντι παρὼν καὶ συνανιὼν ἀνιόντι, καὶ συγκατιὼν ἐρχομένῳ. Ἀδιαίρετος γὰρ τῆς Τριάδος ἡ χάρις· καὶ οὔτε ἀναβὰς ἀπέστη, οὔτε ἐρχόμενος οὐ παρῆν. Ἀλλ' ἀνῆλθεν ὡς ἄνθρωπος ὁ Θεὸς Λόγος, καὶ πάρεστι· κατῆλθε δὲ ὁ Παράκλητος, καὶ τοὺς οὐρανοὺς οὐ κατέλιπεν· ἀλλὰ σὺν τῷ Πατρὶ βασιλεύει, καὶ τὴν γῆν καταυγάζει, καὶ τὴν οἰκονομίαν ἐπλήρωσε, καὶ γένη γλωσσῶν τοῖς ἀποστόλοις ἀπέστειλε· καὶ φωνῆς μέγεθος ἐξαίφνης ἠκούετο, καὶ βιαίας αὔρας ἦχος ἀπετελεῖτο, καὶ βροντῆς τύπον ἡ τοῦ Πνεύματος ἄφιξις ἐμιμεῖτο· ἐπὶ γὰρ τοὺς υἱοὺς τῆς βροντῆς περιεγίνετο.

Καὶ ὤφθησαν αὐτοῖς διαμεριζόμεναι γλῶσσαι ὡσεὶ πυρός· καὶ ἦν τὸ φαινόμενον φοβερὸν, τὸ δὲ γινόμενον ποθεινόν· φλὸξ ἐφιζάνουσα, καὶ μὴ καίουσα, πῦρ ἐπικαθήμενον, καὶ μὴ φλέγον· πῦρ τὴν ἐπουράνιον σοφίαν δωρούμενον, πῦρ εἰς ἀπείρους μεριζόμενον γλώσσας, πῦρ εἰς μυρίας ἰδέας ῥημάτων τεμνόμενον· φλὸξ σοφιστεύειν τοὺς ἁλιέας διδάσκουσα, καὶ ῥήτορα τὸν σκυτοτόμον ἀπαρτίζουσα. Μᾶλλον δὲ οὐδὲν τοσοῦτον οἱ σοφισταί. Οἱ μὲν γὰρ ἑνός τινος ἦσαν ἔθνους διδάσκαλοι, οἱ δὲ τῆς οἰκουμένης γεγένηνται παιδευταί. Καὶ Γαλιλαῖος ἀνὴρ τὰ Μήδων ἐφθέγγετο, καὶ τὰ τῶν Πάρθων ἐπίστατο, καὶ τὰ τῶν Ἐλαμιτῶν οὐκ ἠγνόει· ἀλλ' εἶχεν ἐπὶ τοῦ στόματος πάσης εἰκόνας φωνῆς. Καὶ οὐδεὶς αὐτῶν τῶν ἀκροατῶν ἐνόμιζε βάρβαρον, οὐδὲ ὡς νόθους τοὺς λόγους τῆς ἀκοῆς ἀπέφυγεν· ἀλλ' ὡς παντὸς ἔθνους πολίτης ἠκούετο, πάσης τῆς οἰκουμένης γλῶτταν ἑαυτῷ περιφέρων, καὶ πρῶτον τοῦτον τῆς εὐσεβείας εἰλήφαμεν καρπόν.

Ἐπὶ μὲν γὰρ τῆς τοῦ πύργου κατασκευῆς τὰ τῆς φωνῆς ἐμερίσθη, καὶ τὰς ἀλλήλων ἠγνόησαν γλώττας οἱ ἄνθρωποι. Ἔδει γὰρ 52.808 τῆς θεομάχου βουλῆς τὴν ὁμόνοιαν ἀγνωσίαις συναχθῆναι ῥημάτων, καὶ τοὺς κακῶς ἀλλήλοις συμπράξαντας τῇ τῆς γλώττης μεταβολῇ διαστῆναι, καὶ τῶν ἀλογίστων ἐγχειρημάτων λόγῳ τὴν πεῖραν λαβεῖν, καὶ μήτε λέγοντα λέγειν, μήτε ἀκούοντα συνιέναι, μηδὲ μάτην προσαπολλύναι τοὺς χρόνους. Τί γάρ σοι τῆς ἀπονοίας τὸ κέρδος; τί σοι τῆς μεγαλουργίας τὸ τέλος; Τί τὸ ἀκατάληπτον βιάζῃ καταλαβεῖν; Τί τὸν οὐρανὸν ἁρπάζειν φιλονεικεῖς, ὁ μηδὲ τῆς γῆς ἄξιος ὢν ἀπολαύειν; Τί μετεωρολογεῖς, ὁ μηδὲ τῆς τοῦ πλησίον φωνῆς ἐπακούων; Μερίζω σοι τὴν φωνὴν, καὶ καταλύω τὴν πρᾶξιν, οὐ τὴν σὴν ἀνάβασιν δεδοικὼς, οὐδὲ ὑπὲρ τῆς ἐμοῦ βασιλείας φοβούμενος, ἀλλὰ σοῦ τοῦ μάτην πονοῦντος καὶ κοπτομένου κηδόμενος. Οὐδὲ γὰρ λίθων οἰκοδομὴ, καὶ πολυχειρίᾳ συντιθέμενος πύργος εἰς οὐρανὸν ἀνάγειν πέφυκεν, ἀλλὰ ἅρματα θεογνωσίας, καὶ πολλοὶ δικαιοσύνης, καὶ φωτὸς καθαρώτερος βίος, καὶ πτέρυγες ἀρετῆς πρὸς ἐκείνην τὴν ὁδὸν ἀνάγουσιν. Ἐκείνους μὲν ἡ γλῶττα μερισθεῖσα τῆς τόλμης κατέπαυσε, σοφῶς τε ὁμοῦ καὶ φιλανθρώπως τοῦτο τοῦ Θεοῦ κυβερνήσαντος.

Ὃ δὲ παρ' ἐκείνων ἔλαβεν ὡς κακῶν, τοῦτο τοῖς ἀποστόλοις ὡς ἀγαθοῖς ἐδωρήσατο, καὶ ὁ διὰ γλώττης κολάσας τοὺς ἀσεβεῖς, διὰ γλώττης τοὺς ἁγίους ἐδόξασε· καὶ οἱ τοῦ λόγου διάκονοι τὰς τοῦ λόγου μορφὰς ὑποδέχονται, οὐ πρὸς ἐπίδειξιν τῆς χάριτος ἀπολαύσαντες, ἀλλ' ἐπὶ χρείᾳ τὸ δῶρον ἐπιδεξάμενοι. Ἔδει γὰρ τοὺς τῆς οἰκουμένης παιδευτὰς τὰ τῆς οἰκουμένης ἐπίστασθαι. Ἀσθενὴς γὰρ διδάσκαλος ὁ τοῖς μανθάνουσιν ἀσαφής. Ἀλλ' ὡς τηλικούτων μυστηρίων