ON RENUNCIATION

Αʹ. ΠΕΡΙ ΑΠΟΤΑΓΗΣ

IN THE BEGINNING when God created man he set him in paradise (as the divine holy scripture says), (Gen 2:25) adorned with every virtue, and gave him a command not to eat of the tree in the middle of paradise. (Gen 2:16-17) He was provided for in paradise, in prayer and contemplation in the midst of honor and glory; healthy in his emotions and sense perceptions, and perfect in his nature as he was created.

(1.)  Ἐν ἀρχῇ ὅτε ἐποίησεν ὁ Θεὸς τὸν ἄνθρωπον, ἔθετο  αὐτὸν ἐν τῷ παραδείσῳ, καθὼς λέγει ἡ ἁγία Γραφή, κοσμήσας  ἁπάσῃ ἀρετῇ, δοὺς αὐτῷ ἐντολὴν τοῦ μὴ φαγεῖν ἐκ τοῦ  ξύλου τοῦ ἐν μέσῳ τοῦ παραδείσου. Καὶ ἦν ἐν τρυφῇ τοῦ  παραδείσου, ἐν εὐχῇ, ἐν θεωρίᾳ, ἐν πάσῃ δόξῃ καὶ τιμῇ, ⁽⁵⁾  ἔχων σώας τὰς αἰσθήσεις καὶ ὢν ἐν τῷ κατὰ φύσιν καθὼς  καὶ ἐκτίσθη.

Then God in his goodness had mercy on his creatures and gave Moses a written law in which he forbade some things and allowed others, saying ‘this you shall do, that you shall not do”. He gave the commandments, and said ‘the Lord, your God, is one Lord,” (Deut 6:4) so as thereafter to turn their minds from polytheism, and then: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your soul and with all your mind,” (Deut 6:5) everywhere proclaiming that God is one, and there is no other. For in saying “You shall love the Lord, your God,” he showed that God is one and one is the Lord. So also in the decalogue: ‘the Lord your God shall you adore, him only shall you worship. You shall adhere to him and swear by his name.” (Deut 6:13) Then he adds, “You shall have no other gods, nor any likeness to anything in heaven above or on earth beneath (Deut 5:7-8)—for they used to bow down before all sorts of creatures.

(2.)  Τότε λοιπὸν ὁ ἀγαθὸς Θεὸς ἐλεήσας τὸ πλάσμα αὐτοῦ,  ἔδωκε τὸν γραπτὸν νόμον διὰ Μωϋσέως, ἐν ᾧ τὰ μὲν ἀπηγό-  ρευσεν, τὰ δὲ διηγόρευσεν, οἷόν τι λέγω· Τόδε ποιήσατε,  τόδε μὴ ποιήσατε. Ἔδωκεν ἐντολὰς καὶ εὐθέως λέγει·  Κύριος ὁ Θεός σου Κύριος εἷς ἐστιν, ἵνα τέως ἀποστήσῃ ⁽⁵⁾  τὸν νοῦν αὐτῶν ἀπὸ πολυθεΐας. Καί· Ἀγαπήσεις Κύριον τὸν  Θεόν σου ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ ψυχῇ σου καὶ ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ διανοίᾳ σου.  Πανταχοῦ κηρύσσει ὅτι ὁ Θεὸς εἷς ἐστι καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ἄλλος.  Εἰπὼν γὰρ ὅτι· Ἀγαπήσεις Κύριον τὸν Θεόν σου, ἔδειξεν  ὅτι ὁ Θεὸς εἷς ἐστι καὶ εἷς Κύριός ἐστι. Καὶ πάλιν εἰς τοὺς ⁽¹⁰⁾  δέκα λόγους· Κύριον τὸν Θεόν σου προσκυνήσεις καὶ  αὐτῷ μόνῳ λατρεύσεις καὶ πρὸς αὐτὸν κολληθήσῃ καὶ τῷ  ὐτῷ μόνῳ λατρεύσεις καὶ πρὸς αὐτὸν κολληθήσῃ καὶ τῷ  ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ ὀμῇ· λοιπὸν ἐπάγει τό· Οὐκ ἔσονταί σοι  θεοὶ ἕτεροι, οὐδὲ παντὸς ὁμοίωμα ὅσα ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ ἄνω  καὶ ὅσα ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς κάτω. Ἐσέβοντο γὰρ πάντα τὰ κτίσματα. 

The good God, then, gave the law as a help, for their conversion, for putting right what was evil, but they did not reform. He sent the prophets, but they were able to do nothing. For evil prevailed as said Isaiah, “no injury, no bruise, no wound was cauterized; no chance of soothing dressings; no oil, no bandaging of wounds,” (Is 16) as much as to say that the evil was not in one member, or in one place, but in the whole body. It took in the whole soul and all its powers.

(3.)  Ἔδωκεν οὖν τὸν νόμον ὁ ἀγαθὸς Θεὸς πρὸς βοήθειαν,  πρὸς ἐπιστροφήν, πρὸς διόρθωσιν τῆς κακίας· καὶ ὅμως οὐ  διωρθώθη. Ἔπεμψε προφήτας, καὶ οὐδ’ αὐτοὶ ἠδυνήθησαν.  Ὑπερίσχυσε γὰρ ἡ κακία, ὡς λέγει ὁ Ἡσαΐας· Οὔτε τραῦμα  οὔτε μώλωψ οὔτε πληγὴ φλεγμαίνουσα· οὐκ ἔστι μάλαγμα ⁽⁵⁾  ἐπιθεῖναι οὔτε ἔλαιον οὔτε καταδέσμους· οἷον εἰπεῖν, οὐκ  ἔστι μερικὴ ἡ κακία, οὐδὲ ἐν ἑνὶ τόπῳ, ἀλλ’ ἐν ὅλῳ τῷ  σώματι, ὅλην περιέχει τὴν ψυχήν, ὅλας τὰς δυνάμεις αὐτῆς  συνέχει· οὐκ ἔστι μάλαγμα ἐπιθεῖναι, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς· οἱονεί, 

Everything was a slave to sin, everything was under the control of sin. As Jeremiah said, “We would heal Babylon but she would not be healed.” (Jer 28:9) That is to say, we have revealed your [God’s] name, we have announced your commandments, your benefits and your warnings. We have put Babylon on her guard against enemy risings. All the same she is not healed; she has not been converted, she has not feared, she has not turned from her wickedness. In another place he says, ‘they have not submitted to discipline”, (Jer 2:30) that is, correction and instruction. And in the psalm it says, ‘their soul abhors all nourishment and has come near to the gates of death.” (Ps 107:18)

πάντα δεδούλωται τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ, πάντα κεκράτηται ὑπ’ ⁽¹⁰⁾  αὐτῆς. Λέγει δὲ καὶ ὁ Ἱερεμίας· Ἰατρεύσαμεν τὴν Βαβυλῶνα  καὶ οὐκ ἰάθη· τοῦτ’ ἔστι· Τὸ ὄνομά σου ἐφανερώσαμεν, τὰς  ἐντολάς σου ἀνηγγείλαμεν, τὰς εὐεργεσίας, τὰς ἐπαγγελίας,  ἐχθρῶν ἐπαναστάσεις προεμηνύσαμεν τῇ Βαβυλῶνι, καὶ  ὅμως οὐκ ἰάθη· τοῦτ’ ἔστιν οὐ μετενόησεν, οὐκ ἐφοβήθη, ⁽¹⁵⁾  οὐκ ἐπέστρεψεν ἀπὸ τῆς κακίας αὐτῆς. Ὥσπερ καὶ ἀλλαχοῦ  λέγει ὅτι· Οὐκ ἐδέξαντο παιδείαν, τοῦτ’ ἔστι νουθεσίαν,  διδασκαλίαν. Καὶ ἐν τῷ ψαλμῷ λέγει· Πᾶν βρῶμα ἐβδελύ-  ξατο ἡ ψυχὴ αὐτῶν, καὶ ἤγγισαν ἕως τῶν πυλῶν τοῦ θανάτου. 

Then at last the good, man-loving God sends his only begotten Son. It was for God alone to heal and prevail against such miseries; and the prophets were not ignorant of this. Wherefore David clearly said, “O you, who are seated above the cherubim, show yourself; stir up your power and come to save us.” (Ps 80:2) And again, “Lord, bow down the heavens and come down” (Ps 144:5) and more to the same effect. The other prophets also, each in his own way, proclaim many things about it, now begging him to come down, now revealing that he certainly will come

(4.)  Τότε λοιπὸν ὁ ἀγαθὸς καὶ φιλάνθρωπος Θεὸς πέμπει  τὸν Υἱὸν αὐτοῦ τὸν μονογενῆ. Θεοῦ γὰρ ἦν μόνου τὸ ἰάσασθαι  καὶ περιγενέσθαι τοιούτου πάθους· καὶ οὐκ ἠγνόησαν τοῦτο  οἱ προφῆται. Ὅθεν καὶ φανερῶς ἔλεγεν ὁ Δαβίδ· Ὁ  καθήμενος ἐπὶ τῶν Χερουβίμ, ἐμφάνηθι, ἐξέγειρον τὴν ⁽⁵⁾  δυναστείαν σου καὶ ἐλθὲ εἰς τὸ σῶσαι ἡμᾶς. Καί· Κύριε,  κλῖνον οὐρανοὺς καὶ κατάβηθι· καὶ ὅσα τοιαῦτα. Καὶ οἱ  ἄλλοι δὲ προφῆται πάντες ἕκαστος αὐτῶν διαφόρως τοιαῦτα  ̓λλοι δὲ προφῆται πάντες ἕκαστος αὐτῶν διαφόρως τοιαῦτα  πολλὰ ἔκραξον, τὰ μὲν παρακαλοῦντες ἵνα κατέλθῃ, τὰ δὲ  πληροφορηθέντες ὅτι πάντως κατέρχεται. 

. Therefore our Lord did come, by being made man for our sakes, so that, as the scripture says, like should be healed by like, soul by soul, flesh by flesh, for he became completely man—without sin.. He took our very substance and took his origin from our race and he became a New Adam, like the Adam he himself had formed. For he renewed man in his nature, restored the depraved senses and sensibility of human nature to what it had been in the beginning. Having become man, he lifted fallen man up again. He freed him from slavery to sin which had mastered him by force. For with violence and tyranny the Enemy was leading man to sin, reluctantly, without really wanting to sin, as the Apostle speaking in our person says, “I do not the good which I would but the evil I would not, that I do.” (Rm 7:19)

  Ἦλθεν οὖν ὁ Κύριος ἡμῶν, γενόμενος δι’ ἡμᾶς ἄνθρωπος ⁽¹⁰⁾  ἵνα, ὡς λέγει ὁ ἅγιος Γρηγορίος, τῷ ὁμοίῳ τὸ ὅμοιον  ἰάσηται, τῇ ψυχῇ τὴν ψυχήν, τῇ σαρκὶ τὴν σάρκα. Πάντα  γὰρ γίνεται χωρὶς ἁμαρτίας ἄνθρωπος. Αὐτὴν τὴν οὐσίαν  ἡμῶν ἔλαβεν, τὴν ἀπαρχὴν αὐτοῦ τοῦ φυράματος ἡμῶν,  καὶ γίνεται νέος Ἀδὰμ κατ’ εἰκόνα τοῦ κτίσαντος αὐτόν· ⁽¹⁵⁾  ἀνανεοῖ γὰρ τὸ κατὰ φύσιν καὶ σώας πάλιν ποιεῖ τὰς αἰσθήσεις  ὡς ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἐγένοντο· ἀνενέωσεν τὸν πεσόντα ἄνθρωπον  γενόμενος ἄνθρωπος, τὸν καταδουλωθέντα τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ  ἠλευθέρωσε, τὸν βίᾳ ὑπ’ αὐτῆς ἀγόμενον. Βίᾳ γὰρ καὶ  τυραννίδι ἤγετο ὑπὸ τοῦ ἐχθροῦ ὁ ἄνθρωπος, καὶ σχεδὸν ⁽²⁰⁾  καὶ οἱ μὴ θέλοντες ἁμαρτῆσαι βίᾳ ἡμάρτανον, ὡς λέγει ὁ  Ἀπόστολος ἐκ προσώπου ἡμῶν· Οὐ γὰρ ὃ θέλω ἀγαθόν,  τοῦτο ποιῶ· ἀλλ’ ὃ οὐ θέλω κακόν, τοῦτο πράσσω. 

Having become man, then, for our sakes, God freed man from the Enemy’s tyranny. He took away his power, broke his strength, took us out of his hand, and freed us from slavery to him—unless we spontaneously choose to obey him by sinning. For the Lord gave us power, as he told us, to trample on serpents and scorpions and all the power of the enemy, (Lk 10:19) since he cleansed us of all sin by baptism. For Holy Baptism purges us of iniquity and washes away all stains.

(5.)  Γενόμενος οὖν ὁ Θεὸς ἄνθρωπος δι’ ἡμᾶς, ἠλευθέρωσε  τὸν ἄνθρωπον τυραννίδος τοῦ ἐχθροῦ. Πᾶσαν γὰρ τὴν  δύναμιν αὐτοῦ καθεῖλεν, αὐτὴν τὴν ἰσχὺν αὐτοῦ συνέτριψε  καὶ ἐρρύσατο ἡμᾶς τοῦ εἶναι ὑποχειρίους αὐτοῦ, τοῦ εἶναι  καταδεδουλωμένους αὐτῷ, εἰ μήτοι γε ἡμεῖς αὐτοὶ ἑκουσίως ⁽⁵⁾  θελήσωμεν ἁμαρτῆσαι. Ἔδωκε γὰρ ἡμῖν ἐξουσίαν, καθὼς  εἶπε, πατεῖν ἐπάνω ὄφεων καὶ σκορπίων καὶ ἐπὶ πᾶσαν τὴν  δύναμιν τοῦ ἐχθροῦ, καθαρίσας ἀπὸ πάσης ἁμαρτίας διὰ τοῦ  ἁγίου βαπτίσματος.

Therefore, The Man [God] gave us instructions, as I said, which purify our passions and those evil dispositions which come from our inner man. (Cf. Rm 7:22, Eph 3:16, Plato, Rep. IX. 589) He instilled into man’s inner conscience the power to judge good and evil; he woke it from sleep; he showed the causes from which sins rise and he says to us, ‘the Law says, “Do not commit adultery”, but I say to you, do not entertain desire.

(6.)  Ἔδωκεν οὖν ἡμῖν, ὡς εἶπον, ἐντολὰς καθαιρούσας  καὶ ἀπ’ αὐτῶν τῶν παθῶν ἡμῶν, αὐτῶν τῶν κακῶν δια-  θέσεων τοῦ ἐντὸς ἀνθρώπου ἡμῶν. Παραπέμπει γὰρ αὐτῷ  τὴν διάκρισιν τοῦ καλοῦ καὶ τοῦ κακοῦ, ἐξυπνίζει αὐτόν,  δεικνύει αὐτῷ τὰς αἰτίας ὅθεν ἔρχεται εἰς τὸ ἁμαρτάνειν, ⁽⁵⁾  καὶ λέγει· Ὁ νόμος εἶπε· Μὴ μοιχεύσῃς· ἐγὼ δὲ λέγω·  Μηδὲ ἐπιθυμήσῃς.

Again the Law says, “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth,” (Ex 21:24) etc., but Our Lord admonishes us not only to bear patiently the blows of one who strikes us, but humbly to turn to him the other cheek. (Cf. Mt 5:38-9) And so the object of the Law is to teach us not to do to others what we do not wish to suffer, and therefore it cuts away our wrong-doing through our fear of suffering. Now the object must be, as I am always saying, to cast away our hatred, our love of pleasure, our vainglory and the rest of our unruly desires.

  Πάλιν ὁ νόμος λέγει· Ὀφθαλμὸν ἀντὶ ὀφθαλμοῦ καὶ  ὀδόντα ἀντὶ ὀδόντος, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Αὐτὸς δὲ παραινεῖ μὴ ⁽¹⁵⁾  μόνον δέχεσθαι μετὰ μακροθυμίας τὴν πληγὴν τοῦ ῥαπί-  ζοντος ἡμᾶς, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν ἄλλην σιαγόνα στρέφειν αὐτῷ  μετὰ ταπεινώσεως. Τότε γὰρ ὁ σκοπὸς ἦν τοῦ νόμου διδάξαι  ἡμᾶς μὴ ποιεῖν ἃ μὴ θέλωμεν παθεῖν. Ἀνέκοπτεν οὖν ἡμᾶς  τοῦ ποιεῖν τὸ κακὸν διὰ τοῦ φόβου τοῦ μὴ παθεῖν. Ἄρτι τὸ ⁽²⁰⁾  ζητούμενόν ἐστιν, ὡς εἶπον, ἐκβαλεῖν αὐτὸ τὸ μῖσος, αὐτὴν ⁽²⁰⁾  τὴν φιληδονίαν, αὐτὴν τὴν φιλοδοξίαν, καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ πάθη. 

I repeat that the aim of Christ, our Master, is precisely to teach us how we come to commit all our sins; how we fall into all our evils. First he sets us free through Holy Baptism, as I have already said, giving us the forgiveness of our sins, and he has given us the power to do good if we desire to and no longer to be dragged down into sin, so to speak, by force. Forone who has consented to sin is weighed down and dragged away by it. As it is written: “By his sins is everyone put in bondage.” (Prov 5:22) Then he teaches us by his holy precepts how to be cleansed from our own passions so that we do not fall again into those same sins. Finally he shows us how we come to despise and disobey the commandments of God and adds the medicine that all may be able to obey and be saved. What then is the medicine and what the cause of our contempt? Listen to what the Lord himself tells us: “Learn of me, for I am meek and humble of heart and you shall find rest for your souls.” (Mt 11:29)

(7.)  Σκοπός ἐστιν ἁπλῶς ἄρτι τῷ Δεσπότῃ ἡμῶν Χριστῷ  διδάξαι ἡμᾶς πόθεν ἤλθομεν εἰς ὅλας τὰς ἁμαρτίας ταύτας,  πόθεν ἐνεπέσαμεν εἰς ὅλας τὰς κακὰς ἡμέρας. Πρῶτον μὲν οὖν  ἠλευθέρωσεν ἡμᾶς, ὡς ἤδη εἶπον, διὰ τοῦ ἁγίου βαπτίσματος,  δοὺς ἡμῖν τὴν ἄφεσιν τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν· καὶ ἔδωκεν ἡμῖν ⁽⁵⁾  ἐξουσίαν ποιεῖν τὸ καλόν, ἐὰν θέλωμεν, καὶ μηκέτι ἕλκεσθαι,  ὡς ἂν εἴποι τις, μετὰ βίας εἰς τὸ κακόν. Ὁ γὰρ δεδουλωμένος  ἁμαρτίαις βαρεῖται καὶ ἕλκεται ὑπ’ αὐτῶν, καθὼς λέγει·  Σειραῖς δὲ τῶν ἑαυτοῦ ἁμαρτιῶν ἕκαστος σφίγγεται. Εἶτα  διδάσκει ἡμᾶς διὰ τῶν ἁγίων ἐντολῶν πῶς καθαρθῆναι καὶ ⁽¹⁰⁾  ἀπ’ αὐτῶν τῶν παθῶν, ἵνα μὴ διὰ τούτων πάλιν τοῖς αὐτοῖς  ἁμαρτήμασι περιπίπτωμεν. Λοιπὸν δεικνύει ἡμῖν καὶ τὴν  αἰτίαν ὅθεν ἔρχεταί τις εἰς καταφρόνησιν καὶ παρακοὴν  καὶ αὐτῶν τῶν ἐντολῶν τοῦ Θεοῦ· καὶ οὕτως παρέχει  ἡμῖν καὶ ταύτης τὴν ἰατρείαν, ἵνα δυνηθῶμεν ὑπακοῦσαι ⁽¹⁵⁾  καὶ σωθῆναι.  Τίς οὖν ἐστιν αὕτη ἡ ἰατρεία καὶ τίς ἡ αἰτία τῆς κατα-  φρονήσεως; Ἀκούσατε τί λέγει αὐτὸς ὁ Κύριος ἡμῶν·  Μάθετε ἀπ’ ἐμοῦ ὅτι πρᾶός εἰμι καὶ ταπεινὸς τῇ καρδίᾳ,  καὶ εὑρήσετε ἀνάπαυσιν ταῖς ψυχαῖς ὑμῶν.

There you have it in a nutshell: he has taught us the root and cause of all evils and also the remedy for it, leading to all good. He shows us that pretentions to superiority [pride] cast us down and that it is impossible to obtain mercy except by the contrary, that is to say, by humility. Self-elevation begets contempt and disobedience begets perdition, whereas humility begets obedience and the saving of souls. And I call that real humility which is not humble in word and outward appearance but is deeply planted in the very heart; (Cf. Cassian, Conf. 18:11.Jer 2:19) for this is what he meant when he said that “I am meek and humble of heart”.

Ἰδοὺ ὧδε ἐν ⁽²⁰⁾  συντόμῳ δι’ ἑνὸς λόγου ἔδειξεν ἡμῖν τὴν ῥίζαν καὶ αἰτίαν  πάντων τῶν κακῶν, καὶ τὴν ἰατρείαν αὐτῆς, τὴν αἰτίαν  πάντων τῶν ἀγαθῶν, ἔδειξεν ὅτι ἡ ἔπαρσις κατέβαλεν ἡμᾶς  καὶ ὅτι ἀδύνατόν ἐστιν ἄλλως ἐλεηθῆναι, εἰ μὴ διὰ τοῦ  ἐναντίου, ὅπερ ἐστὶν ἡ ταπεινοφροσύνη. Ἡ γὰρ ἔπαρσις ⁽²⁵⁾  γεννᾷ τὴν καταφρόνησιν καὶ τὴν παρακοὴν τὴν ὀλεθρίαν,  ὥσπερ καὶ ἡ ταπεινοφροσύνη γεννᾷ τὴν ὑπακοὴν καὶ τὴν  σωτηρίαν τῶν ψυχῶν. Ἐκείνην δὲ λέγω τὴν ὄντως ταπεινο-  φροσύνην, οὐ τὴν ἐν λόγῳ μόνον ἢ σχήματι ταπείνωσιν,  ἀλλὰ διάθεσιν ἰδικῶς ταπεινὴν γενομένην ἐν αὐτῇ τῇ καρδίᾳ,  ἐν αὐτῷ τῷ φρονήματι· οὕτως γὰρ λέγει· ὅτι πρᾶός εἰμι ⁽³⁰⁾  καὶ ταπεινὸς τῇ καρδίᾳ. 

Let anyone desiring to find true humility and rest for his soul learn lowliness of mind and see that in it is all joy and all glory and all tranquility, and in pretentions to superiority, just the contrary. From where do all those afflictions of the mind come to us? Is it not through our arrogance, our thinking too much of ourselves? Is it not through extolling ourselves and our evil self-preference? Is it not the bitterness of ourselves that will master us? But how did this come about? Was man not created in all comfort, in all joy, in perfect peace and in all glory? Was he not in paradise? He was sent away. Why? God said you shall not do this, and he did do it! Do you not see the pride in that, the obstinacy, the insubordination? And so God said, the man is mad; he does not know how to be happy, unless he experiences evil days he will go away and completely perish. Unless he knows what tribulation is he will never know what rest is. He then gave him what he deserved and expelled him from paradise. Then he delivered him to his own self-will and to his own desires, that he may grind down his own bones and learn that he cannot go straight on his own, but only by the command of God; so that learning the poverty of disobedience may teach him the tranquility that comes from obedience. As the prophet says, “Your rebellion shall teach you.” (Mt 11:28)

(8.)  Ὁ θέλων οὖν εὑρεῖν ἀληθινὴν ἀνάπαυσιν τῇ ψυχῇ  αὐτοῦ μαθῇ τὴν ταπεινοφροσύνην καὶ βλέπῃ ὅτι ἐν αὐτῇ  ἐστι πᾶσα ἡ χαρὰ καὶ πᾶσα ἡ δόξα καὶ πᾶσα ἡ ἀνάπαυσις,  ὥσπερ καὶ ἐν τῇ ὑπερηφανίᾳ πάντα τὰ ἐναντία. Πόθεν γὰρ  ἤλθομεν εἰς ὅλας τὰς θλίψεις ταύτας; Διὰ τί γὰρ ἐνεπέσαμεν ⁽⁵⁾  εἰς ὅλην τὴν ἀθλιότητα ταύτην; Οὐ διὰ τὴν ὑπερηφανίαν  ἡμῶν; οὐ διὰ τὴν ἀπόνοιαν ἡμῶν; οὐ διὰ τὸ ἀνασχέσθαι  ἡμᾶς τῆς κακῆς προαιρέσεως ἡμῶν; οὐ διὰ τὸ κρατῆσαι τὴν  πικρίαν τοῦ θελήματος ἡμῶν; Ἀλλὰ πόθεν; Οὐκ ἐκτίσθη  ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἐν πάσῃ τρυφῇ, ἐν πάσῃ χαρᾷ, ἐν πάσῃ ἀναπαύσει, ⁽¹⁰⁾  ἐν πάσῃ δόξῃ; Οὐκ ἦν ἐν τῷ παραδείσῳ; Ἐκέλευσε· Μὴ  ποιήσῃς τόδε· καὶ ἐποίησε. Βλέπεις ὑπερηφάνειαν; βλέπεις  τράχηλον; βλέπεις ἀνυποταξίαν; Λοιπὸν ὁ Θεὸς ἰδὼν τὴν  ἀναίδειαν ἐκείνην λέγει· Οὗτος μωρός ἐστιν, οὗτος οὐκ οἶδε  χαρῆναι. Ἐὰν μὴ ποιήσῃ κακὰς ἡμέρας οὗτος, ὑπάγει ⁽¹⁵⁾  τελείως ἀπόλλυται. Ἐὰν γὰρ μὴ μάθῃ τί ἐστι θλίψις, οὐ  μανθάνει τί ἐστιν ἀνάπαυσις. Τότε ἔδωκεν αὐτῷ τὰ ἄξια  αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐξέβαλεν αὐτὸν τοῦ παραδείσου. Παρεδόθη λοιπὸν  τῇ ἰδίᾳ φιλαυτίᾳ καὶ τοῖς ἰδίοις θελήμασιν, ἵνα συντρίψωσι  τὰ ὀστᾶ αὐτοῦ, ἵνα μάθῃ μὴ στοιχεῖν ἑαυτῷ, ἀλλὰ τῇ ⁽²⁰⁾  ἐντολῇ τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἵνα αὕτη ἡ ταλαιπωρία τῆς παρακοῆς  διδάξῃ αὐτὸν τὴν ἀνάπαυσιν τῆς ὑπακοῆς, ὡς λέγει ἐν τῷ  προφήτῃ· Παιδεύσει σε ἡ ἀποστασία σου. 

Nevertheless, the goodness of God, as I have said many times, did not despise what he had formed, but again urged him [to obey], again exhorted him. “Come to me,” he said, “all you who labor and are heavily burdened and I will refresh you” (Gen 3:9)—as much as to say, ‘see how you have to work! See the misery you have brought on yourself! See how you are tried by evil and your own unruliness! But come change your ways, acknowledge your own powerlessness so that you can come to your rest and your own true glory. Live through lowliness of mind instead of going to your death through pretentious pride. Learn of me, for I am meek and humble of heart and you shall find rest for your souls.

  Ὅμως ἡ ἀγαθότης τοῦ Θεοῦ, καθὼς πολλάκις εἶπον, οὐ  παρεῖδε τὸ ἴδιον πλάσμα, ἀλλὰ πάλιν προτρέπεται, πάλιν ⁽²⁵⁾  παρακαλεῖ· Δεῦτε πρός με πάντες οἱ κοπιῶντες καὶ πεφορ-  τισμένοι, κἀγὼ ἀναπαύσω ὑμᾶς· οἷον εἰπεῖν· Ἰδοὺ  ἐκοπιάσατε, ἰδοὺ ἐταλαιπωρήσατε, ἰδοὺ ἐπειράσθητε τοῦ  κακοῦ τῆς ἀνυποταξίας ὑμῶν· δεῦτε λοιπὸν ἐπιστρέψατε,  δεῦτε ἐπίγνωτε τὴν ἀδυναμίαν καὶ τὴν ἀτιμίαν ὑμῶν, ἵνα  ἔλθητε εἰς τὴν ἀνάπαυσιν καὶ τὴν δόξαν ὑμῶν. Δεῦτε ζήσατε ⁽³⁰⁾  διὰ τῆς ταπεινοφροσύνης, ἀνθ’ ὧν ἐθανατώθητε διὰ τῆς  ὑψηλοφροσύνης. Μάθετε ἀπ’ ἐμοῦ ὅτι πρᾶός εἰμι καὶ  ταπεινὸς τῇ καρδίᾳ, καὶ εὑρήσετε ἀνάπαυσιν ταῖς ψυχαῖς  ὑμῶν. 

See brethren, what arrogance does? See what lowliness is able to do! What need was there for all these contortions? If from the beginning man had humbled himself and listened to God and obeyed his command, there would have been no fall. Again, after Adam had done wrong, God have him a chance to repent and be forgiven and yet he kept on being stiff-necked and unrepentant. For God came to him and said, “Adam, where are you?” (Gen 3:12) instead of saying, “From what glory are you come to this? Are you not ashamed? Why did you sin? Why did you go astray?”—as if urging him sharply to say, “Forgive me!” But there was no sign of humility. There was no change of heart but rather the contrary. He replied, ‘the wife that you gave me”—mark you, not “my wife”—”deceived me,”; ‘the wife that you gave me,” (Gen 3:13) as if to say, ‘this disaster you placed upon my head”.

(9.)  Βαβαί, ἀδελφοί μου, τί ποιεῖ ἡ ὑπερηφανία; Βαβαί,  τί δύναται ἡ ταπεινοφροσύνη; Τίς ἦν χρεία ὅλων τῶν  κύκλων τούτων; Ἐξ ἀρχῆς γὰρ εἰ ἐταπεινώθη καὶ ὑπήκουσε  τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ ἐφύλαξε τὴν ἐντολήν, οὐκ εἶχεν ἐκπεσεῖν.  Πάλιν μετὰ τὸ ἀσχημονῆσαι, ἔδωκε πρόφασιν τοῦ μετανοῆσαι ⁽⁵⁾  καὶ ἐλεηθῆναι, καὶ ἔμεινεν ὁ τράχηλος αὐτοῦ ὑψηλός.  Ἦλθε γὰρ λέγων αὐτῷ· Ἀδάμ, ποῦ εἶ; ἀντὶ τοῦ· Ἀπὸ  ποίας δόξης εἰς ποίαν ἦλθες αἰσχύνην; Καὶ λοιπὸν ἐρωτᾷ  αὐτόν· Διὰ τί ἥμαρτες; διὰ τί παρέβης; προτρεπόμενος  αὐτὸν ἰδικῶς εἰς τὸ εἰπεῖν· Συγχώρησον. Καὶ ποῦ ἐστι τὸ ⁽¹⁰⁾  Συγχώρησον; Οὐδαμοῦ ταπείνωσις, οὐδαμοῦ μετάνοια,  ἀλλὰ τὸ ἐναντίον. Καὶ ἀντέρει· Ἡ γυνὴ ἣν δέδωκάς μοι,  οὔτε λέγει· Ἡ γυνή μου ἐχλεύασέ με, ἀλλά· ἡ γυνὴ ἣν  δέδωκάς μοι, ὡς ἄν τις εἴποι· Ἡ συμφορὰ ἣν ἤνεγκας  κατὰ τῆς κεφαλῆς μου.

And now look and consider how this was only an anticipation of our own state! See how many and great the evils it has brought on us—this self-justification, this holding fast to our own will, this obstinacy in being our own guide. All this was the product of that hateful arrogance towards God. Whereas the products of humility are self-accusation, distrust of our own sentiments, hatred of our own will. By these one is made worthy of being redeemed, of having his human nature restored to its proper state, through the cleansing operation of Christ’s holy precepts. Without humility it is impossible to obey the Commandments or at any time to go towards anything good. As Abba Mark says: without a contrite heart it is impossible to be free from wickedness or to acquire virtue. (2 Cor 7:1) Therefore, by compunction of heart you get a grip on the Commandments, are free from evil, gain virtue and, what is more, peace of mind returns to you.

(10.)  Καὶ λοιπὸν ἰδοὺ ἁπλῶς βλέπετε ποῦ ἔφθασεν ἡ  κατάστασις ἡμῶν· ἰδοὺ εἰς ποῖα καὶ πόσα κακὰ ἤνεγκεν  ἡμᾶς τὸ δικαιοῦν ἑαυτούς, τὸ στοιχεῖν ἑαυτοῖς, τὸ κρατεῖν  τὸ ἴδιον θέλημα, ἅπερ εἰσὶ τέκνα τῆς ἐχθρᾶς τοῦ Θεοῦ  ὑπερηφανίας· ὥσπερ καὶ τῆς ταπεινοφροσύνης τέκνα εἰσὶ τὸ ⁽⁵⁾  ἑαυτὸν μέμφεσθαι, τὸ μὴ πιστεύειν τῇ ἰδίᾳ συνέσει, τὸ μισεῖν  τὸ ἴδιον θέλημα. Ἐκ τούτων γὰρ ἀξιοῦταί τις ἀναλαβέσθαι  ἑαυτὸν καὶ ἐπανελθεῖν εἰς τὸ κατὰ φύσιν διὰ τῆς καθάρσεως  τῶν ἁγίων ἐντολῶν τοῦ Χριστοῦ. Δίχα γὰρ ταπεινώσεως,  οὐ δύναται ὑπακοῦσαι ταῖς ἐντολαῖς, οὐδὲ ἐλθεῖν εἰς τί ποτε ⁽¹⁰⁾  ἀγαθόν, ὡς εἶπεν ὁ ἀββᾶς Μάρκος· Ἅνευ συντριβῆς καρδίας,  ἀδύνατον ἀπαλλαγῆναι ἀπὸ κακίας, ἀδύνατον τὸ καθόλου  κτήσασθαι ἀρετήν. Οὐκοῦν διὰ τῆς συντριβῆς τῆς καρδίας  καταδέχεταί τις τὰς ἐντολάς, ἀπαλλάσσεται τῆς κακίας,  κτᾶται τὰς ἀρετὰς καὶ λοιπὸν ἐπανέρχεται εἰς τὴν ἰδίαν ⁽¹⁵⁾  ἀνάπαυσιν. 

The holy men of old thoroughly understood this and through all their training and guidance in humility were zealous in uniting themselves to God. Thereby becoming friends of God, they were able, after Holy Baptism, not only to cut out sins arising from evil passions, but to conquer the passions themselves and to acquire complete control of their passions. Such were Saint Anthony [of the Desert], Saint Pachomius and the rest of the God-bearing Fathers.

(11.)  Τοῦτο καὶ οἱ ἅγιοι πάντες ἐπιστάμενοι, ἔσπευδον  διὰ πάσης ταπεινῆς ἀγωγῆς ἑνῶσαι ἑαυτοὺς τῷ Θεῷ·  ἐγένοντο γάρ τινες φιλόθεοι οἵτινες μετὰ τὸ ἅγιον βάπτισμα  οὐ μόνον τὰς ἐνεργείας τῶν παθῶν περιέκοψαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ  αὐτὰ τὰ πάθη νικῆσαι ἠβουλήθησαν καὶ γενέσθαι ἀπαθεῖς· ⁽⁵⁾  οἷος ἦν ὁ ἅγιος Ἀντώνιος καὶ Παχώμιος καὶ οἱ λοιποὶ  θεοφόροι Πατέρες.

Their aim was to purify themselves, as the Apostle says, “from every blemish of the flesh and the spirit”. (Ps 19:8) They knew that by the keeping of the Commandments the soul is purified and the mind too is enlightened, and they perceived that it starts functioning as nature intended it to. ‘the command of the Lord gives light and enlightens the eyes.” (See DS 2:451-4: Chameunie) Being in this world they knew very well that it was not possible, without trouble, to make progress in virtue, and they worked out for themselves an unusual kind of life, a strange way of passing their time, I mean the solitary life. They began to flee the world and to live in the desert, in watching and fasting and sleeping on the bare earth (Cf. Mt 19:16-22) and other forms of mortification. Having left their homeland and their relations, riches, and possessions, they simply crucified themselves to this world. And not only did they keep the commandments, but made a gift to God.

Ἐπεὶ οὖν ἔσχον σκοπὸν καθᾶραι ἑαυτούς,  ὡς λέγει ὁ Ἀπόστολος, ἀπὸ παντὸς μολυσμοῦ σαρκὸς καὶ  πνεύματος, ἐγίνωσκον δὲ ὅτι διὰ τῆς φυλακῆς τῶν ἐντολῶν,  ὡς ἤδη εἴπομεν, καθαίρεται ἡ ψυχὴ καὶ οἷον εἰπεῖν καθαίρεται  ὁ νοῦς καὶ ἀναβλέπει καὶ ἔρχεται εἰς τὸ κατὰ φύσιν· ἡ ⁽¹⁰⁾  ἐντολὴ γὰρ Κυρίου τηλαυγὴς φωτίζουσα ὀφθαλμούς·  κατενόησαν ὅτι ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ ὄντες, οὐκ εὐχερῶς δύνανται  κατορθῶσαι τὴν ἀρετήν, καὶ ἐπενόησαν ἑαυτοῖς ξένον βίον,  ξένην τινὰ διαγωγήν, λέγω δὴ τοῦ μονήρους βίου, καὶ  ἤρξαντο φεύγειν τὸν κόσμον καὶ οἰκεῖν ἐν ταῖς ἐρήμοις, ἐν ⁽¹⁵⁾  νηστείαις καὶ χαμευνίαις καὶ ἀγρυπνίαις καὶ τῇ λοιπῇ  κακοπαθείᾳ, καὶ ἀποταξίᾳ πάσῃ πατρίδος καὶ συγγενῶν,  χρημάτων, κτημάτων· καὶ ἁπλῶς ἐσταύρωσαν ἑαυτοῖς τὸν  κόσμον. Καὶ οὐ μόνον τὰς ἐντολὰς ἐφύλαξαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ δῶρα  προσήνεγκαν τῷ Θεῷ. Καὶ λέγω πῶς·

The commandments were given to all Christians and it is understood that every Christian observes them; this is, as it were, the tribute appointed to be paid to the King. Anyone who says, “I will not pay tribute,” will he escape punishment? There are, however, in the world great and illustrious men who not only pay the appointed tribute, but also offer gifts and they are thought worthy of great honor, great benefits and esteem

Αἱ ἐντολαὶ τοῦ ⁽²⁰⁾  Χριστοῦ πᾶσι τοῖς χριστιανοῖς ἐδόθησαν, καὶ ὑπόκειται πᾶς  χριστιανὸς φυλάξαι αὐτάς· ἀννῶναί εἰσιν, ὡς ἂν εἴπῃ τις,  βασιλεῖ κεχρεωστημέναι. Τίς λέγων· Οὐ διδῶ ἀννώνας  τῷ βασιλεῖ, ἐκφεύγει κόλασιν; Εἰσὶ δὲ ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ μεγάλοι  ἄνθρωποι καὶ λαμπροὶ οἵτινες οὐ μόνον ἀννώνας παρέχουσι ⁽²⁵⁾  τῷ βασιλεῖ, ἀλλὰ καὶ δῶρα προσφέρουσιν αὐτῷ· καὶ  ἀξιοῦνται οἱ τοιοῦτοι μεγάλης τιμῆς, μεγάλων δωρεῶν καὶ  ἀξιωμάτων. 

. So also the Holy Fathers not only kept the commandments but also offered gifts to God. These gifts are virginity and poverty. These are not commanded but freely given. Nowhere is it written, you shall not take a wife or beget children. Neither did Christ give the commandment, ‘sell your property!” He did not choose to do so when the lawyer approached him saying, “Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” He replied, “You know the Commandments. Do not kill, do not steal, do not commit adultery, do not bear false witness against your neighbour” etc. When the answer came, “All these things I have kept from my youth”, he added, “If you want to be perfect, sell your property and give the money to the poor,” etc. See, he did not say ‘sell your property” as a commandment, but as a counsel. This is clear from the condition imposed, “if you wish to be perfect.” (Gal 6:14)

(12.)  Οὕτως οὖν καὶ οἱ Πατέρες οὐ μόνον τὰς ἐντολὰς  ἐφύλαξαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ δῶρα προσήνεγκαν τῷ Θεῷ. Δῶρα δέ  εἰσι παρθενία καὶ ἀκτημοσύνη· ταῦτα οὐκ εἰσὶν ἐντολαί,  δῶρά εἰσιν· οὐδαμοῦ γὰρ γέγραπται· Μὴ λάβῃς γυναῖκα,  μὴ παιδοποιήσῃς. Οὐδὲ πάλιν ἔδωκεν ἐντολὴν ὁ Χριστὸς ⁽⁵⁾  λέγων· Πώλησόν σου τὰ ὑπάρχοντα. Ἀμέλει, ὅτε προσῆλθεν  αὐτῷ ὁ νομικὸς λέγων· Διδάσκαλε, τί ποιήσας ζωὴν  αἰώνιον κληρονομήσω; ἀπεκρίθη· Τὰς ἐντολὰς οἶδας· Οὐ  φονεύσεις, οὐ μοιχεύσεις, οὐ κλέψεις, οὐ ψευδομαρτυρήσεις  κατὰ τοῦ πλησίον σου, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Τοῦ δὲ εἰπόντος ὅτι· ⁽¹⁰⁾  Ταῦτα πάντα ἐφυλαξάμην ἐκ νεότητός μου, ἐπιφέρει τό· ⁽¹⁰⁾  Εἰ θέλεις τέλειος εἶναι, πώλησόν σου τὰ ὑπάρχοντα καὶ  δὸς πτωχοῖς, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Ἰδοὺ οὐκ εἶπε· Πώλησόν σου  τὰ ὑπάρχοντα ὡς ἐντελλόμενος, ἀλλ’ ὡς συμβουλεύων. Τὸ  γὰρ εἰπεῖν· Εἰ θέλεις, οὐκ ἔστιν ἐντελλομένου, ἀλλὰ  συμβουλεύοντος. ⁽¹⁵⁾ 

As we said, therefore, the Fathers offered to God besidesall the other virtues, their virginity and poverty as a gift. They crucified the world to themselves, and struggled to crucify themselves to the world. As the Apostle says, ‘the world is crucified to me and I to the world.” (Alloq. 1:5; PG 78:1689) What is the difference? The world is crucified to a man when a man renounces the world to become a solitary, and leaves parents, wealth, possessions, business dealings, and the giving of present,. Then he is crucifying the world to himself, for he has left himself, and this is what the Apostle means by, ‘the world is crucified to me.” But then he adds, “and I to the world”. How can a man be crucified to the world? When, after being freed from external things he begins the combat against pleasure itself, against the desire of having things, against his own will, and he puts to death his evil passions. Then he himself is crucified to the world and is worthy to say with the Apostle, ‘the world is crucified to me, and I to the world”.

(13.)  Καθὼς οὖν εἴπομεν, προσήνεγκαν οἱ Πατέρες τῷ  Θεῷ πρὸς ταῖς ἄλλαις ἀρεταῖς δῶρα τὴν παρθενίαν καὶ τὴν  ἀκτημοσύνην, καί, καθὼς προείπομεν, ἐσταύρωσαν ἑαυτοῖς  τὸν κόσμον καὶ ἠγώνιζον τὸ λοιπὸν ἵνα καὶ ἑαυτοὺς τῷ  κόσμῳ σταυρώσωσι, καθὼς λέγει ὁ Ἀπόστολος· Ἐμοὶ ⁽⁵⁾  κόσμος ἐσταύρωται, κἀγὼ τῷ κόσμῳ. Τίς οὖν ἡ διαφορά;  Ὁ κόσμος σταυροῦται τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ, ὅτ’ ἂν ἀποτάσσηται  ἄνθρωπος τῷ κόσμῳ, καὶ δῆθεν μονάζῃ καὶ ἀφῇ γονεῖς,  χρήματα, κτήματα, πραγματείας, δοσοληψίας· τότε σταυ-  ροῦται αὐτῷ ὁ κόσμος· ἀφῆκε γὰρ αὐτόν, καὶ τοῦτό ἐστιν ⁽¹⁰⁾  ὃ λέγει ὁ Ἀπόστολος· Ἐμοὶ κόσμος ἐσταύρωται. Εἶτα  ἐπάγει· κἀγὼ τῷ κόσμῳ. Πῶς λοιπὸν σταυροῦται ὁ ἄνθρω-  πος τῷ κόσμῳ; Ὅτ’ ἂν μετὰ τὴν ἀπαλλαγὴν τῶν ἔξω  πραγμάτων ἀγωνίζηται καὶ πρὸς αὐτὰς τὰς ἡδονάς, πρὸς  αὐτὰς τὰς ἐπιθυμίας τῶν πραγμάτων καὶ πρὸς τὰ θελήματα ⁽¹⁵⁾  αὐτοῦ, καὶ νεκρώσῃ τὰ πάθη αὐτοῦ, τότε καὶ αὐτὸς σταυ-  ροῦται τῷ κόσμῳ, καὶ ἀξιοῦται κατὰ τὸν Ἀπόστολον  εἰπεῖν· Ἐμοὶ κόσμος ἐσταύρωται, κἀγὼ τῷ κόσμῳ. 

Our Fathers, as I said, having crucified the world to themselves, were earnest in the fight to crucify themselves to the world. We thought to crucify the world to ourselves when we left it and entered the monastery, but now we have no desire to crucify ourselves to the world. We have still the taste for it; we are passionately attached to its glories, to delicate food and clothing. Suppose there is a good tool to which we become attached. We allow that miserable tool to have the same effect on us as Abba Zosimos says, as if it were a hundred gold sovereigns. (Cf. Evagrius, Prak. (PG 40:1220f; CS 4:13-14), Cassian. Inst. 1 (CSEL 17:8-16) “We reckon to come out of the world and leave the affairs of the world”—and yet we come to the monastery and through trivial things we reveal, and give way to, our desire for the things of this world; and we suffer this way through our own folly because, having given up great and honourable things, we satisfy our inordinate passions with things of very little value. Each one of us has given up something—perhaps great possessions, or perhaps very small—at any rate, each one has given up what he had to give. We come to the monastery and, as I said, we satisfy our own desires through trivial things which are worth nothing. We ought not to do this, for as we are set apart from the world and its affairs, so we ought to be set apart from the desire for material things, and to know what renunciation is and why we came to the monastery, [to know] what is the objective we have set ourselves, and so adjust our conduct to correspond with it, and throw ourselves into the contest as our Fathers did.

(14.)  Οἱ Πατέρες οὖν, καθὼς εἴπομεν, σταυρώσαντες  ἑαυτοῖς τὸν κόσμον, ἐσπούδασαν δι’ ἀγώνων σταυρῶσαι καὶ  ἑαυτοὺς τῷ κόσμῳ. Ἡμεῖς μὲν ἐδόξαμεν σταυροῦν ἑαυτοῖς  τὸν κόσμον, ὅτι ἀφήκαμεν αὐτὸν καὶ ἤλθομεν εἰς τὸ μονασ-  τήριον, ἑαυτοὺς δ’ οὐ θέλομεν σταυρῶσαι τῷ κόσμῳ· ἔτι ⁽⁵⁾  γὰρ ἔχομεν τὰς ἡδονὰς αὐτοῦ, ἀκμὴν ἔχομεν τὰς προσ-  παθείας αὐτοῦ, προσπάσχομεν τῇ δόξῃ αὐτοῦ, προσπάσ-  χομεν βρώμασιν, ἱματίοις. Ἐργαλεῖον καλὸν ἐάν ἐστι,  προσπάσχομεν αὐτῷ καὶ ἀφίεμεν τὸ μικρὸν ἐργαλεῖον  ἐκεῖνο ποιῆσαι ἐν ἡμῖν, ὡς εἶπεν ὁ ἀββᾶς Ζωσιμᾶς, τόπον  κεντηναρίου. Καὶ ἐδόξαμεν ἐξελθεῖν τοῦ κόσμου καὶ ἀφεῖναι ⁽¹⁰⁾  τὰ αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἐρχόμεθα εἰς τὸ μοναστήριον, καὶ δι’ εὐτελῶν  πραγμάτων πληροῦμεν τὴν προσπάθειαν αὐτοῦ· τοῦτο δὲ  πάσχομεν ἀπὸ πολλῆς ἀφροσύνης, ὅτι ἀφέντες μεγάλα καὶ  πολύτιμα πράγματα, εἰς ἐλάχιστά τινα πληροῦμεν τὰ πάθη  ἡμῶν. Ἕκαστος γὰρ ἡμῶν ὃ εἶχεν, ἀφῆκεν, ὁ ἔχων μεγάλα, ⁽¹⁵⁾  τὰ μεγάλα, καὶ ὁ ἔχων εἴ τι δήποτε, καὶ αὐτὸς ὃ εἶχεν ἀφῆκεν,  ἕκαστος πρὸς τὴν δύναμιν αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἐρχόμεθα εἰς τὸ  μοναστήριον, καὶ καθὼς εἶπον, δι’ εὐτελῶν πραγμάτων καὶ  μηδαμινῶν, πληροῦμεν τὴν προσπάθειαν ἡμῶν. Οὐκ  ὀφείλομεν δὲ οὕτως ποιεῖν, ἀλλ’ ὥσπερ ἀπεταξάμεθα τῷ ⁽²⁰⁾  κόσμῳ καὶ τοῖς πράγμασιν αὐτοῦ, οὕτως ὀφείλομεν καὶ  αὐτῇ τῇ προσπαθείᾳ τῇ περὶ τὰς ὕλας ἀποτάξασθαι καὶ  εἰδέναι τί ἐστιν αὕτη ἡ ἀποταγὴ καὶ διὰ τί ἤλθομεν εἰς τὸ  μοναστήριον καὶ τί ἐστι τὸ σχῆμα ὃ λαμβάνομεν, καὶ πρὸς  αὐτὸ καταρτίζειν ἑαυτοὺς καὶ ἀγωνίζεσθαι κατὰ τοὺς ⁽²⁵⁾  Πατέρας ἡμῶν. 

Our habit consists of a tunic with short sleeves, a leather belt, a scapular, and a cowl. Each one of these is a symbol, and we ought to know what they symbolize. (Cf. Jn 19:2)

(15.)  Τὸ σχῆμα ὃ φοροῦμεν, κολόβιόν ἐστι μὴ ἔχον  χειρίδια καὶ ζώνη δερματίνη καὶ ἀνάλαβος καὶ κουκούλλιον.  Ταῦτα δὲ σύμβολά εἰσι, καὶ ὀφείλομεν μαθεῖν τί σημαίνουσιν  ἡμῖν τὰ σύμβολα τοῦ σχήματος ἡμῶν. 

Why do we wear a tunic with short sleeves when others wear them long? Long sleeves signify hands. Hands are given to do things with. When the thought occurs to do anything suited to the “old” man—for example, to steal, or to strike someone—it is in fact to do something sinful with our hands. We ought to pay attention to our habit and take note that we have no long sleeves, that is, we have no hands for doing what unredeemed man did.

  Διὰ τί φοροῦμεν κολόβιον μὴ ἔχον χειρίδια; Τῶν ἄλλων  ⁽⁵⁾  ἐχόντων πάντων χειρίδια, ἡμεῖς διὰ τί οὐκ ἔχομεν; Τὰ  χειρίδια σύμβολά εἰσι τῶν χειρῶν. Αἱ δὲ χεῖρες λαμβάνονται  εἰς τὴν πρακτικήν. Ὅτε οὖν ἔρχεται ἡμῖν λογισμὸς ἐνεργῆσαί  τι τοῦ παλαιοῦ ἀνθρώπου διὰ τῶν χειρῶν ἡμῶν, ὑπόθου  κλέψαι ἢ δεῖραι ἢ ἁπλῶς οἵαν δήποτε ἁμαρτίαν ποιῆσαι διὰ  τῶν χειρῶν, ὀφείλομεν προσέχειν τῷ σχήματι ἡμῶν καὶ ⁽¹⁰⁾  μαθεῖν ὅτι οὐκ ἔχομεν χειρίδια· τοῦτ’ ἔστιν, οὐκ ἔχομεν  χεῖρας τοῦ ἐνεργῆσαί τι τοῦ παλαιοῦ ἀνθρώπου. 

There is another sign in the tunic: it is the purple mark and what does this mark signify? Anyone fighting for a king has purple in his mantle. For because a king wears purple, all those who fight for him put purple on their clothes; this is the royal uniform which shows they are the king’s men and that they fight for him. So we put the purple mark on our habit to show that we fight for Christ, our King, and that we desire to endure for him all the sufferings he endured for us. For when Our Master was suffering for us he wore a purple robe; (Rev 19:16) first as king, for he is King of Kings and Lord of Lords, (2 Tim 2:4) and then because he was mocked by impious soldiers. Therefore, also having purple for a sign, we promise, as I said, to suffer all that he suffered. A soldier does not leave his service [regiment] and withdraw secretly to become a farmer or a merchant, for that would bring him into disgrace. As the apostle says, “lvo one fighting for God mixes himself up with secular business so that he is able to please Him to whom he has engaged himself.” (Cf. 1 Cor 7:34-5) So also we ought to contend, neglecting worldly affairs, and to beoccupied with God alone and, as it says, to be like “A maiden who is both devoted and without distraction”.” (Lk 12:35)

  Ἔχει δὲ τὸ κολόβιον ἡμῶν καὶ σημεῖόν τί ποτε πορφυ-  ροῦν· τί θέλει εἶναι τὸ σημεῖον τὸ πορφυροῦν; Ἕκαστος  στρατευόμενος τῷ βασιλεῖ πορφύραν ἔχει εἰς τὸ χλανίδιον ⁽¹⁵⁾  αὐτοῦ. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ὁ βασιλεὺς πορφύραν φορεῖ, πάντες οἱ  στρατευόμενοι αὐτῷ βάλλουσιν πορφύραν εἰς τὰ χλανίδια  αὐτῶν, τοῦτ’ ἔστιν τὸ βασιλικὸν ἔνδυμα, ἵνα διὰ τούτου  δείξωσιν ὅτι τοῦ βασιλέως εἰσὶ καὶ ὅτι αὐτῷ στρατεύονται·  οὕτως καὶ ἡμεῖς λαμβάνομεν τὸ σημεῖον τὸ πορφυροῦν εἰς ⁽²⁰⁾  τὸ κολόβιον ἡμῶν, δεικνύοντες ὅτι τῷ Χριστῷ ἐστρατεύθημεν  καὶ χρεωστοῦμεν ὑπομεῖναι ὅλα τὰ παθήματα αὐτοῦ, ὅσα  ὑπέμεινε δι’ ἡμᾶς. Καὶ γὰρ ὅτε ἔπαθεν ὁ Δεσπότης ἡμῶν,  ἐφόρεσε τὸ πορφυροῦν ἱμάτιον. Πρῶτον μὲν ὡς βασιλεύς·  αὐτὸς γάρ ἐστιν ὁ βασιλεὺς τῶν βασιλευόντων καὶ Κύριος ⁽²⁵⁾  τῶν κυριευόντων· ἔπειτα δὲ καὶ ὡς ἐμπαιζόμενος ὑπὸ τῶν  δυσσεβῶν ἐκείνων. Καὶ ἡμεῖς οὖν ἔχοντες τὸ σημεῖον τὸ  πορφυροῦν, ἐπαγγελλόμεθα, ὡς εἶπον, ὑποφέρειν πάντα τὰ  παθήματα αὐτοῦ· καὶ ὥσπερ ὁ στρατιώτης οὐκ ἀφίησι τὴν  στρατιὰν αὐτοῦ καὶ ὑπάγει γίνεται γεωργὸς ἢ πραγματευτής, ⁽³⁰⁾  ἐπεὶ ἐκπίπτει τῆς στρατιᾶς αὐτοῦ, ὡς λέγει ὁ Ἀπόστολος·  Οὐδεὶς στρατευόμενος ἐμπλέκεται ταῖς τοῦ βίου πραγμα-  τείαις, ἵνα τῷ στρατολογήσαντι ἀρέσῃ· οὕτως καὶ ἡμεῖς  θέλομεν ἀθλῆσαι τοῦ ἀμεριμνῆσαι ἀπὸ πάντων τῶν τοῦ  κόσμου τούτου, καὶ Θεῷ μόνῳ σχολάσαι, ὡς λέγει, ἵνα ᾖ ⁽³⁵⁾  ἡ παρθένος εὐπάρεδρος καὶ ἀπερίσπαστος. 

We also have a belt, and why do we wear it? The belt which we wear is a symbol first of all that we are ready for work. Everyone who wants to work first girds himself so that he is not hindered by his robes. As the Apostle says, ‘they stood with their loins girt.” (Cf. Cassian, Inst. 1:11) Again, as the belt is made of deer skins, it is a sign of bodily mortification, and so we should mortify our fleshly desires. (Col 3:5) The belt is worn around the loins, from which area voluptuous pleasures [are said to] proceed. This is what the Apostle says, “Mortify your members on the earth against fornication and uncleanness” (Cf. Mt 16:24) etc.

(16.)  Ἔχομεν δὲ καὶ ζώνην· ζώνην διὰ τί φοροῦμεν; Ἡ  ζώνη ἣν φοροῦμεν, σύμβολόν ἐστι πρῶτον μὲν ὅτι ἐσμὲν  εὐτρεπισμένοι εἰς ἔργον· ἕκαστος γὰρ θέλων ἐργάσασθαι,  πρῶτον ζώννυται καὶ οὕτως ἄρχεται τοῦ ἔργου, ὡς λέγει·  Ἔστωσαν αἱ ὀσφύες ὑμῶν περιεζωσμέναι. Καὶ πάλιν, ἵνα  ὥσπερ ἐστὶν ἀπὸ νεκροῦ δέρματος ἡ ζώνη, οὕτως καὶ ἡμεῖς ⁽⁵⁾  νεκρώσωμεν τὴν φιληδονίαν ἡμῶν. Ἔστι γὰρ ἡ ζώνη  κατ’ αὐτῆς τῆς ὀσφύος ἡμῶν· ἐκεῖ δέ εἰσιν οἱ νεφροί, ἐν  οἷς λέγεται εἶναι τὸ ἐπιθυμητικὸν τῆς ψυχῆς. Καὶ τοῦτό  ἐστιν ὃ λέγει ὁ Ἀπόστολος· Νεκρώσατε τὰ μέλη τὰ ἐπὶ  τῆς γῆς, πορνείαν, ἀκαθαρσίαν, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. ⁽¹⁰⁾ 

We wear also a scapular and the scapular is placed across our shoulders: this signifies a cross on our shoulders as He said, ‘take up your cross and follow me.” (Evag., Prak.; PG 40:221; CS 4:14) What is the cross, but the perfect mortification set up through our faith in Christ. For faith, as the teaching of the Fathers again has it, “always gets round obstacles and frees us for the work which brings us to this perfect mortification” (Cor 14:20)—that is, that a man puts to death in himself the affection for the things of this world. He has given up parents, possessions, riches, all that a man can give up to take up the contest; let him also renounce self-will and the desire for these things. This is what we mean by perfect renunciation.

(17.)  Ἔχομεν καὶ ἀνάλαβον· ὁ ἀνάλαβος τίθεται σταυροει-  δῶς ἐπὶ τοὺς ὤμους ἡμῶν· τοῦτ’ ἔστι, τοῦ σταυροῦ τὸ  σύμβολον βαστάζομεν εἰς τοὺς ὤμους ἡμῶν, καθὼς λέγει·  Ἆρον τὸν σταυρόν σου καὶ ἀκολούθει μοι. Τί δέ ἐστι  σταυρὸς ἀλλ’ ἢ τελεία νέκρωσις ἥτις κατορθοῦται ἐν ἡμῖν ⁽⁵⁾  διὰ τῆς εἰς Χριστὸν πίστεως; Ἡ γὰρ πίστις, ὡς λέγει πάλιν  εἰς τὸ Γεροντικόν, περιστέλλει ἀεὶ τὰ κωλύοντα καὶ ἀνεμπό-  διστον ποιεῖ ἡμῖν τὴν ἐργασίαν, τὴν φέρουσαν ἡμᾶς εἰς  τοιαύτην τελείαν νέκρωσιν· τοῦτ’ ἔστιν, ἵνα νεκρώσῃ τις  ἑαυτὸν ἀπὸ πάντων τῶν τοῦ κόσμου τούτου, καὶ ἐὰν ἀφῆκε ⁽¹⁰⁾  γονεῖς, ἵνα ἀγωνίσηται καὶ πρὸς τὴν προσπάθειαν αὐτῶν,  ὁμοίως καὶ χρήματα ἢ κτήματα, καὶ ἕκαστον πρᾶγμα ᾧ δ’  ἂν ἀποτάξηταί τις, θέλῃ καὶ αὐτῇ τῇ προσπαθείᾳ αὐτοῦ  ἀποτάξασθαι, καθὼς καὶ ἤδη εἴπομεν· καὶ αὕτη ἐστὶν ἡ  τελεία ἀποταγή. ⁽¹⁵⁾ 

We wear also a cowl or hood: this is a symbol of abasement. Little ones, not full-grown men, wear the cowl without malice. We wear the cowl for this reason: that we may be little ones in malice. As the Apostle says, “Do not be little ones in understanding, be little ones in malice.” (Prak.; PG 40:1220; CS 4:13) What is being a little one in malice? A baby has no malice. If he is not treated with honor he is not angry; if he is honored, he is not subject to vainglory. If what he has is taken away he is not troubled. To be a little one in malice means having no desire for revenge and laying no claim to glory.

(18.)  Λαμβάνομεν δὲ καὶ κουκούλλιον· τοῦτο δέ ἐστι  σύμβολον τῆς ταπεινώσεως. Τὰ νήπια γὰρ τὰ μικρὰ τὰ  ἄκακα φοροῦσι κουκούλλια· ἄνθρωπος δὲ τέλειος κουκούλ-  λιον οὐ φορεῖ. Ἡμεῖς οὖν διὰ τοῦτο φοροῦμεν, ἵνα νηπιά-  ζωμεν τῇ κακίᾳ, ὡς λέγει ὁ Ἀπόστολος· Μὴ παιδία ⁽⁵⁾  γίνεσθε ταῖς φρεσίν, ἀλλὰ τῇ κακίᾳ νηπιάζετε. Τί δέ ἐστι  τὸ νηπιάζειν τῇ κακίᾳ; Τὸ νήπιον τὸ μὴ ἔχον κακίαν, ἐὰν  ἀτιμασθῇ, οὐκ ὀργίζεται, καὶ ἐὰν τιμηθῇ, οὐ κενοδοξεῖ·  ἐὰν λάβῃ τις τὰ αὐτοῦ, οὐ θλίβεται· νηπιάζει γὰρ τῇ κακίᾳ·  οὐκ ἐπεκδικεῖ πάθος, οὐκ ἀντιποιεῖται δόξης. 

And again the hood is a symbol of God’s grace. Because as the cowl covers and warms the head of the child, so the grace of God covers the mind, as the Book of the Fathers says, ‘that the cowl symbolizes the grace of God our Saviour, our direction-finding apparatus, our childhood in Christ, on account of the devil’s continuous attempts at striking and wounding us.” (Apo Nau 55; ROC (1907) p. 180)

  Ἔστι πάλιν τὸ κουκούλλιον σύμβολον τῆς χάριτος τοῦ ⁽¹⁰⁾  Θεοῦ, ὅτι ὥσπερ τὸ κουκούλλιον σκεπάζει καὶ θάλπει τὴν  κεφαλὴν τοῦ παιδίου, οὕτως καὶ ἡ χάρις τοῦ Θεοῦ σκεπάζει  τὸν νοῦν ἡμῶν, ὡς λέγει εἰς τὸ Γεροντικὸν ὅτι· Τὸ  κουκούλλιον σύμβολόν ἐστι τῆς χάριτος τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν  Θεοῦ σκεπαζούσης ἡμῶν τὸ ἡγεμονικὸν καὶ περιθαλπούσης ⁽¹⁵⁾  τὴν ἐν Χριστῷ νηπιότητα διὰ τοὺς ῥαπίζειν ἀεὶ καὶ τι-  τρώσκειν ἐπιχειροῦντας. 

And so we have about our waist the belt which is mortification of unreasoning passions; on our shoulders the scapular which is the cross; the cowl [hood] which is the sign of innocence and childhood in Christ.

(19.)  Ἰδοὺ ἔχομεν τὴν ζώνην ἐπὶ τῆς ὀσφύος ἡμῶν, ὅ  ἐστιν ἡ νέκρωσις τῆς ἀλόγου ἐπιθυμίας, καὶ τὸν ἀνάλαβον  κατὰ τῶν ὤμων, ὅ ἐστι σταυρός. Ἰδοὺ καὶ τὸ κουκούλλιον,  ὅ ἐστι σημεῖον τῆς ἀκακίας καὶ τῆς ἐν Χριστῷ νηπιότητος. 

Let us lead a life in agreement with our appearance, as the Fathers say, lest we take on a character alien to it. (Cf. Evagrius. Prak.; CS 4:19, 32-4) But as we have given up the great things let us give up the little things; as we have renounced the world, so let us give up passionate attachment to it. For through certain small and worthless things our inordinate desires bind us again to the world without our realizing it.

Πολιτευσώμεθα οὖν πρὸς τὸ σχῆμα ἡμῶν, ὡς εἶπον οἱ ⁽⁵⁾  Πατέρες, ἵνα μὴ ἀλλότριον σχῆμα φορῶμεν, ἀλλ’ ὥσπερ  ἀφήκαμεν τὰ μεγάλα, οὕτως ἀφήσωμεν καὶ τὰ μικρά·  ἀφήκαμεν τὸν κόσμον, ἀφήσωμεν καὶ τὰς προσπαθείας  αὐτοῦ· αἱ γὰρ προσπάθειαι, καθὼς εἶπον, καὶ διὰ μικρῶν  τινων καὶ εὐτελῶν καὶ μηδενὸς λόγου ἀξίων πάλιν συνδεσ- ⁽¹⁰⁾  μοῦσιν ἡμᾶς τῷ κόσμῳ, καὶ οὐ νοοῦμεν. 

If, therefore, we desire to be set free and to enjoy perfect freedom, let us learn to cut off our desires and so, with God’s help, in a little while, we shall make progress and arrive at a state of tranquility. For nothing helps men so much as to cut off self-will, for thereby a man prepares the way for nearly all the virtues.If a traveller is on his way and finds a staff and uses it, he does away with much of his journey’s labor. So it is in pursuing this way of cutting off instinctive desires. From this cutting off of self-will a man procures for himself tranquility and from tranquility he comes, with the help of God, to serene indifference. (Amoun 3; PG 65:128; CS 59:27)

(20.)  Ἐὰν οὖν θέλωμεν τελείως ἀπαλλαγῆναι καὶ  ἐλευθερωθῆναι, μάθωμεν κόπτειν τὰ θελήματα ἡμῶν, καὶ  οὕτως κατὰ μικρὸν μικρὸν σὺν Θεῷ προκόπτοντες  ἐρχόμεθα εἰς τὴν ἀπροσπάθειαν. Οὐδὲν γὰρ οὕτως ὠφελεῖ  τοὺς ἀνθρώπους, ὡς τὸ κόπτειν τὸ ἴδιον θέλημα· ὄντως ⁽⁵⁾  προκόπτει τις ἐκ τούτου τοῦ πράγματος σχεδὸν ὑπὲρ  πᾶσαν ἀρετήν. Καὶ ὥσπερ ἄνθρωπος ὁδεύων ἐν ὁδῷ καὶ  εὑρίσκων ἐν αὐτῇ κοπενδάριον καὶ ὑπάγων αὐτό, δι’  ἐκείνου τοῦ κοπενδαρίου προλαμβάνει πολὺ μέρος ἐκ τῆς  ὁδοῦ ἐκείνης, οὕτως ἐστὶν ὁ ὁδεύων ταύτην τὴν ὁδὸν τῆς  κοπῆς τοῦ θελήματος· ἐκ τοῦ γὰρ κόπτειν τινὰ τὸ ⁽¹⁰⁾  θέλημα αὐτοῦ, κτᾶται τὴν ἀπροσπάθειαν, καὶ ἐκ τῆς  ἀπροσπαθείας ἔρχεται σὺν Θεῷ εἰς τελείαν ἀπάθειαν· 

In a short time a man can cut off ten such desires. He takes a little walk and sees somthing. His thoughts say to him, “Go over there and investigate,” and he says to his thoughts, “Íï! I won’t,” and he cuts off his desire. Again he finds someone gossiping, and his thoughts say to him, “You go and have a word with them,” and he cuts off his desire, and does not speak. Or again his thoughts say to him, “Go up and ask the cook what’s cooking?” and he does not go, but cuts off his desire. Then he sees something else, and his thoughts say to him, “Go down and ask, who brought it?” andhe does not ask. A man denying himself in this way comes little by little to form a habit of it, so that from denying himself in little things, he begins to deny himself in great without the least trouble. Finally he comes not to have any of these extraneous desires, but whatever happens to him he is satisfied with it, as if it were the very thing he wanted. And so, not desiring to satisfy his own desires, he finds himself always doing what he wants to. For not having his own special fancies, he fancies every single thing that happens to him. Thus he is found, as we said, to be without special attachments, and from this state of tranquility he comes to the state of holy indifference.

δύναται δέ τις εἰς μικρὸν διάστημα κόψαι δέκα θελήματα,  καὶ λέγω πῶς· Περιπατεῖ τις μικρὸν καὶ βλέπει τί ποτε,  καὶ λέγει αὐτῷ ὁ λογισμός· Πρόσχες ἐκεῖ, καὶ λέγει τῷ ⁽¹⁵⁾  λογισμῷ· Ὄντως οὐ προσέχω, καὶ κόπτει τὸ θέλημα αὐτοῦ,  καὶ οὐ προσέχει. Πάλιν εὑρίσκει τινὰς λαλοῦντας, καὶ λέγει  αὐτῷ ὁ λογισμός· Εἰπὲ καὶ σὺ τόδε τὸ ῥῆμα, καὶ κόπτει  τὸ θέλημα αὐτοῦ καὶ οὐ λέγει. Πάλιν λέγει αὐτῷ ὁ λογισμός·  Ὕπαγε ἐρώτησον τὸν μάγειρον τί ἕψει, καὶ οὐχ ὑπάγει, ⁽²⁰⁾  ἀλλὰ κόπτει τὸ θέλημα αὐτοῦ. Βλέπει τί ποτε, καὶ λέγει  αὐτῷ ὁ λογισμός· Ἐρώτησον τίς ἤνεγκεν αὐτό, καὶ κόπτει  τὸ θέλημα αὐτοῦ καὶ οὐκ ἐρωτᾷ· καὶ οὕτως κόπτων κόπτων  εἰς συνήθειαν ἔρχεται τοῦ κόπτειν, καὶ ἐκ τῶν μικρῶν  ἄρχεται καὶ τὰ μεγάλα μετὰ ἀναπαύσεως κόπτειν, καὶ  ⁽²⁵⁾  οὕτως λοιπὸν ἔρχεται μήτε ἔχειν ὅλως θέλημα, ἀλλ’ εἴ τι δ’  ἂν γένηται ἀναπαύει αὐτόν, ὡς ὅτι αὐτοῦ ἐστι. Καὶ αὐτοῦ  μὴ θέλοντος ποιῆσαι τὸ θέλημα αὐτοῦ, εὑρίσκεται πάντοτε  ποιῶν αὐτό. Ὃ γὰρ ἴδιον οὐκ ἔχει, ἕκαστον γινόμενον ἴδιον  αὐτοῦ ἐστι. Καὶ οὕτως εὑρίσκεται, ὡς εἴπομεν, μὴ ἔχων ⁽³⁰⁾  προσπάθειαν, καὶ ἐκ τῆς ἀπροσπαθείας, ὡς εἶπον, ἔρχεται  εἰς τὴν ἀπάθειαν.  

You see how much profit it brings us to cut off, little by little, our own will. This is what happened to Blessed Dosithy, a man who left a life of pleasure and idleness, who had never heard a word about God. You have heard to what heights it brought him in a short time. How he mastered himself by obedience, and cut off his own will. How God glorified him and did not allow such virtue to fade from man’s memory, but revealed it to one of the Holy Elders who saw him in the throng of all the Saints rejoicing in their happiness.

(21.)  Βλέπετε κατὰ μικρὸν μικρὸν εἰς ποίαν φέρει προ-  κοπὴν τὸ κόπτειν τὸ ἴδιον θέλημα· ποῖος ἦν ὁ μακάριος  ἐκεῖνος Δωσίθεος, ἀπὸ ποίου βίου, ἀπὸ ποίας τρυφῆς, ἀπὸ  ποίας βλακείας ἄνθρωπος μηδὲ ἀκούσας ποτὲ λόγον Θεοῦ,  καὶ ὅμως ἠκούσατε εἰς ποῖα μέτρα ἤνεγκεν αὐτὸν δι’ ὀλίγου  χρόνου τὸ κρατῆσαι τὴν ὑπακοὴν καὶ κόψαι τὸ ἴδιον θέλημα· ⁽⁵⁾  πῶς δὲ καὶ ἐδόξασεν αὐτὸν ὁ Θεὸς καὶ οὐκ ἀφῆκεν εἰς  λήθην ἐλθεῖν τὴν τοιαύτην αὐτοῦ ἀρετήν, ἀλλὰ ἀπεκάλυψε  τῷ ἁγίῳ γέροντι, καὶ εἶδεν αὐτὸν μεταξὺ ὅλων ἐκείνων τῶν  ἁγίων ἀπολαύοντα τῆς μακαριότητος αὐτῶν. 

I will tell you another thing which likewise happened in my time, that you may learn how obedience, and not following one’s own will, snatched a man from death. At the time when I was one of Abba Seridos” disciples there came a disciple of a great old monk from the region of Ascalon about some business for his abbot. He had the command from his senior to return after vespers to his own cell. When the time came to leave, a violent thunderstorm arose, with rain heavy enough to cause flooding, and yet he wanted to leave as the senior had told him. We begged him to stay, seeing that it was impossible to get safely across the river. He would not be persuaded to stay with us. At last we said, “Let us go with him as far as the river. When he sees it, he will return of his own accord.” So we went off with him, and when we reached the river he took off his cloak and bound it round his head, tied up his scapular and jumped into the raging waters of the river. We just stood there astonished and fearful that he would be drowned, but he kept afloat, and very soon he was seen on the other bank. He put on his cloak, threw us a profound bow from there, received ours in return, and went off at a run. But we stood in wonder, astonished at the power of virtue. We came near with fear, but he went through without danger because of his obedience.

(22.)  Λέγω ὑμῖν καὶ ἄλλο πρᾶγμα ὁμοίως ἐπὶ ἐμοῦ γινόμε-  νον, ἵνα μάθητε ὅτι καὶ ἀπὸ θανάτου ῥύεται ἄνθρωπον ἡ  ὑπακοὴ καὶ τὸ μὴ ἔχειν ἴδιον θέλημα. Ποτὲ ὄντος μου ἐν  τοῖς τοῦ ἀββᾶ Σερίδου, ἦλθεν ἐκεῖ μαθητὴς μεγάλου γέροντος  ἐκ τῶν μερῶν Ἀσκάλωνος εἴς τινα ἀπόκρισιν τοῦ ἀββᾶ ⁽⁵⁾  αὐτοῦ. Εἶχε δὲ ἐντολὴν παρὰ τοῦ γέροντος ὑποστρέψαι  ἀπὸ ἑσπέρας εἰς τὸ ἴδιον κελλίον. Ἐν τοσούτῳ γίνεται  χειμὼν σφοδρότατος καὶ ὄμβροι καὶ βρονταί, καὶ ἦν ὁ  παραπλήσιον χείμαρρος εἰς ὅλην τὴν πλημμύραν αὐτοῦ·  εἶτα ἐκεῖνος ἤθελεν ἀπελθεῖν διὰ τὸ ῥῆμα τοῦ γέροντος.  ⁽¹⁰⁾  Ἡμεῖς δὲ παρεκαλοῦμεν αὐτὸν μεῖναι, ἔχοντες ὅτι ἀδύνατόν  ἐστι σωθῆναι αὐτὸν ἐκ τοῦ ποταμοῦ. Ἐκεῖνος δὲ οὐκ ἐπείθετο  ἡμῖν μεῖναι. Λέγομεν ὕστερον· Ἀπέλθωμεν μετ’ αὐτοῦ  ἕως τοῦ ποταμοῦ· ἐὰν γὰρ ἴδῃ αὐτόν, ἀφ’ ἑαυτοῦ ἔχει ἀνα-  κάμψαι. Ἀπήλθομεν οὖν μετ’ αὐτοῦ, καὶ ὅτε ἐφθάσαμεν ⁽¹⁵⁾  τὸν ποταμόν, ἀποδύεται ἐκεῖνος τὰ ἱμάτια αὐτοῦ καὶ δεσμεῖ  αὐτὰ εἰς τὴν κεφαλὴν αὐτοῦ καὶ ζώννυται τὸ μαφόριον αὐτοῦ  καὶ βάλλει ἑαυτὸν εἰς τὸν ποταμὸν εἰς ὅλον τὸ φοβερὸν ῥεῦμα  ἐκεῖνο. Ἡμεῖς δὲ ἱστάμεθα ἐκπληττόμενοι καὶ τρέμοντες  μήπως ἀποθάνῃ· ἐκεῖνος δὲ ἔμεινε κολυμβῶν καὶ εὑρίσκεται ⁽²⁰⁾  παραχρῆμα εἰς τὸ ἄλλο πέραν καὶ ἐνδύεται τὰ ἱμάτια αὐτοῦ  καὶ βάλλει ἡμῖν ἐκεῖθεν μετάνοιαν καὶ λαμβάνει παράθεσιν  καὶ ἀπέρχεται τρέχων· ἡμεῖς δὲ ἐμείναμεν θαυμάζοντες  καὶ ἐκπληττόμενοι τὴν δύναμιν τῆς ἀρετῆς, ὅτι ἡμεῖς  μετὰ φόβου προσείχομεν, ἐκεῖνος δὲ ἀκινδύνως διῆλθε διὰ  τὴν ὑπακοὴν αὐτοῦ. ⁽²⁵⁾ 

Another Brother was sent by his abba on some necessary business to a correspondent in the country. When he saw himself solicited by the [man’s] daughter to a shameful act and himself in danger of falling, simply cried out, “0 God of my Father, deliver me”, and straightway he was found on the road to Skete, fleeing towards his spiritual father. (Apo Basil 1; PG 65:137; CS 59:33,)

(23.)  Ὁμοίως καὶ ὁ ἀδελφὸς ἐκεῖνος ὃν ἔπεμψεν ὁ ἀββᾶς  αὐτοῦ διὰ τὰς χρείας αὐτῶν πρὸς τὸν ἀποκρισάριον αὐτοῦ  εἰς τὴν κώμην, πῶς ὅτε εἶδεν ἑαυτὸν ἑλκόμενον ὑπὸ τῆς  θυγατρὸς αὐτοῦ εἰς αἰσχρὰν μίξιν, ἵνα μόνον εἴπῃ· Ὁ Θεός,  διὰ τῶν εὐχῶν τοῦ Πατρός μου ἐξελοῦ με, εὐθέως εὑρέθη εἰς ⁽⁵⁾  τὴν ὁδὸν τῆς Σκήτεως ὑπάγων πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα αὐτοῦ.  Βλέπετε δύναμιν ἀρετῆς, βλέπετε ἐνέργειαν ῥήματος, πόσην 

Notice the power of virtue, notice the efficacy of prayer. How much help has he who cried out for the prayers of his spiritual father—as if he would say, “O God, through the prayers of my father, deliver me”—and straightway he was on the road [for home]. Mark well the humility and discretion of both. They were in a tight spot, the Ancient wished to send the brother to their man of business and he did not say to him, “Go” but, “Would you like to go?” And the brother did not say, “Right, I’ll go,” but “11 do what you want me to do.” He was afraid that he might fall into sin and he was afraid of not being obedient. Then, as they were in a very tight spot, the Ancient said to him, “Get up and go!” He did not say to him, “I trust in my God that he will protect you,” but said, “I trust in the prayers of my spiritual father that they will protect you.”

βοήθειαν ἔχει καὶ τὸ ἐπικαλέσασθαί τινα τὰς εὐχὰς τοῦ  Πατρὸς αὐτοῦ· ἵνα εἴπῃ· Ὁ Θεός, διὰ τῶν εὐχῶν τοῦ  Πατρός μου ἐξελοῦ με, εὐθέως εὑρέθη εἰς τὴν ὁδόν. Κατα- ⁽¹⁰⁾  νοήσατε δὲ τὴν ταπείνωσιν καὶ τὴν εὐλάβειαν ἀμφοτέρων.  Ἦσαν ἐν στενώσει, καὶ ἤθελεν ὁ γέρων πέμψαι τὸν ἀδελφὸν  πρὸς τὸν ποιοῦντα αὐτοῖς τὴν ἀπόκρισιν καὶ οὐκ ἔλεγεν  αὐτῷ· Ὕπαγε· ἀλλ’ ἔλεγεν αὐτῷ· Θέλεις ἀπελθεῖν;  Ὁμοίως καὶ ὁ ἀδελφὸς οὐκ εἶπεν· Ὑπάγω, ἀλλ’ ἔλεγεν ⁽¹⁵⁾  αὐτῷ· Ὡς θέλεις ποιῶ. Ἐφοβεῖτο γὰρ καὶ διὰ τὰ σκάνδαλα  καὶ διὰ τὸ μὴ παρακοῦσαι τοῦ Πατρὸς αὐτοῦ. Εἶτα ὡς πλέον  ἐστενώθησαν, λέγει αὐτῷ ὁ γέρων· Ἐγείρου, ὕπαγε· καὶ  οὐκ εἶπεν αὐτῷ· Ἐλπίζω εἰς τὸν Θεόν μου ὅτι σκεπάζει σε·  ἀλλὰ λέγει· Ἐλπίζω εἰς τὰς εὐχὰς τοῦ Πατρός μου ὅτι ⁽²⁰⁾  σκεπάζει σε.

Likewise the brother did not say, when he was tempted, “O my God, deliver me” but, “O God, through the prayers of my father, deliver me.” Each of them was counting on the prayers of his father. See how they yoked obedience to humility! Just as horses are yoked together in a chariot so that one does not outstep the other, so obedience needs to have humility yoked together with it. How can a man be worthy of this grace, unless, as I said, he treats himself harshly to cut off the desires of his own and to give himself, after God, to his [spiritual] father, without hesitation, doing everything with full confidence as though obeying God. Such a man is worthy to find mercy, such a man is worthy to find salvation.

Ὁμοίως καὶ ὁ ἀδελφὸς ὅτε ἐπειράσθη, οὐκ  εἶπεν· Ὁ Θεός μου, ἐξελοῦ με, ἀλλά· Ὁ Θεός, διὰ τῶν  εὐχῶν τοῦ Πατρός μου ἐξελοῦ με. Καὶ ἕκαστος αὐτῶν εἰς  τὰς εὐχὰς τοῦ Πατρὸς αὐτοῦ ἤλπιζε.  Βλέπετε πῶς ἔζευξαν τῇ ὑπακοῇ τὴν ταπείνωσιν· ὥσπερ ⁽²⁵⁾  γὰρ ζεύγνυται τὸ ἅρμα, καὶ οὐ δύναται ὁ ἵππος ὁ εἷς προλα-  βεῖν τὸν ἄλλον, ἐπεὶ κλᾶται, οὕτως χρῄζει ἡ ὑπακοὴ ἔχειν  συνεζευγμένην αὐτῇ τὴν ταπείνωσιν. Καὶ πῶς δύναταί τις  ἀξιωθῆναι ταύτης τῆς χάριτος, ἐὰν μή, καθὼς εἶπον, βιάσηται  κόψαι τὰ ἴδια θελήματα καὶ ἐκδῷ ἑαυτὸν μετὰ Θεὸν τῷ  ἑαυτοῦ Πατρὶ ἐν μηδενὶ διστάζων, ἀλλὰ πάντα ποιῶν ⁽³⁰⁾  ὥσπερ κἀκεῖνοι μετὰ πληροφορίας ὡς ὅτι τῷ Θεῷ ὑπακούει;  Τὶς ἄξιος ἐλεηθῆναι, τὶς ἄξιος σωθῆναι. 

The story is told of Blessed Basi1 (Ac 14:22) that, making a visitation of his monasteries, he said to one of the Heads, “Have you any saints here?” The Abba said, ‘through your prayers, my Lord, we all desire to be saints.” And again Blessed Basil said to him, “No! I mean have you got any saints here?” And the Abba tumbled to it (for he, too, had spiritual insight). “Yes,” he says, and he sent for a certain brother. When he arrived, the Saint said to him, “Wash my feet” and he went and fetched what was necessary. And after his feet were washed, Basil said to the brother, “Wait till I wash your feet.” And without a murmur he allowed himself to be washed by the holy man. After testing the brother in this way, he said, “When I enter the sanctuary, you come, too! And remind me to ordain you.” Again without a murmur, the brother obeyed, and when he saw the holy Basil in the inner sanctuary he went up and reminded him, and Basil ordained him and took him with him, for who else but this blessed brother was suitable to be with this holy god-bearing father? You do not have experience of this unmurmuring obedience; neither do you know what real internal peace is.

(24.)  Φέρεταί ποτε τοιοῦτος λόγος ὅτι παρερχόμενος  ὁ ἅγιος Βασίλειος διὰ τῶν κοινοβίων αὐτοῦ, λέγει ἑνὶ τῶν  ἡγουμένων· Ἔχεις τινὰ τῶν σωζομένων; Λέγει αὐτῷ ὁ  ἀββᾶς· Διὰ τῶν εὐχῶν σου, δέσποτα, πάντες θέλομεν  σωθῆναι. Λέγει πάλιν αὐτῷ ὁ ἅγιος Βασίλειος· Τῶν ⁽⁵⁾  σωζομένων ἔχεις τινά; Ἐκεῖνος νοήσας, ἦν γὰρ καὶ αὐτὸς  πνευματικός, λέγει· Ναί. Λέγει αὐτῷ ὁ ἅγιος· Φέρε μοι  αὐτόν. Ἔρχεται ἐκεῖνος ὁ ἀδελφὸς καὶ λέγει ὁ ἅγιος αὐτῷ·  Δός, νίψωμαι. Ἀπέρχεται καὶ φέρει αὐτῷ νίψασθαι. Μετὰ  δὲ τὸ νίψασθαι τὸν ἅγιον Βασίλειον, λαμβάνει καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ ⁽¹⁰⁾  ἅγιος τὸ νίμμα καὶ λέγει τῷ ἀδελφῷ· Δέξαι, καὶ αὐτὸς  νίψαι. Δέχεται ἐκεῖνος τὸ νίμμα ἀδιακρίτως παρὰ τοῦ  ἁγίου· μετὰ οὖν τὸ δοκιμάσαι αὐτὸν ἐν τούτῳ, λέγει  αὐτῷ πάλιν· Ὅτε εἰσέρχομαι εἰς τὸ ἱερατεῖον, δεῦρο  ὑπόμνησόν με ἵνα χειροτονήσω σε. Πάλιν ἐκεῖνος ἀδιακρίτως ⁽¹⁵⁾  ὑπακούει. Καὶ ὅτε εἶδε τὸν ἅγιον Βασίλειον ἔσω εἰς τὸ  ἱερατεῖον, ἀπέρχεται καὶ ὑπομιμνήσκει αὐτόν, καὶ χειροτονεῖ  αὐτὸν καὶ λαμβάνει αὐτὸν μετ’ αὐτοῦ· τίνι γὰρ ἔπρεπεν  μετὰ τοῦ ἁγίου ἐκείνου τοῦ θεοφόρου εἰ μὴ τῷ τοιούτῳ  εὐλογημένῳ ἀδελφῷ; ⁽²⁰⁾ 

At one time, before I knew the power of this virtue (that is, humility), hearing that through much tribulation we must enter the Kingdom of Heaven, He became afraid because É had no troubles. And when such thoughts came upon me I used to take up a pen and write to one of the Ancients. On this occasion I wrote and asked Abba John, the disciple of Abba Barsanufius, and while I was writing, even before I had finished, I was sensible of help and relief, and this itself increased my freedom from care and my sense of peace. And this is what É said: “Master, since the scriptures say that through much tribulation we must enter into the Kingdom of Heaven and I do not seem to have single affliction, what shall I do? Shall I not lose my soul if I haven’t a single affliction or anxiety?” When I had explained my thought to him in this way, he wrote back declaring, “Do not be afraid, you have no cause to be, for everyone who throws himself completely into obedience to the Fathers shall surely possess this state of freedom from care and peacefulness of soul.”

(25.)  Ὑμεῖς οὐκ ἔχετε πεῖραν ὑπακοῆς ἀδιακρίτου, οὐδὲ  οἴδατε τὴν ἀνάπαυσιν αὐτῆς. Ἠρώτησά ποτε τὸν γέροντα  τὸν ἀββᾶν Ἰωάννην τὸν τοῦ ἀββᾶ Βαρσανουφίου καὶ εἶπον·  Δέσποτα, ἐπειδὴ ἡ Γραφὴ λέγει ὅτι διὰ πολλῶν θλίψεων  δεῖ ἡμᾶς εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν, καὶ ⁽⁵⁾  βλέπω ὅτι οὐδὲ μίαν θλίψιν ἔχω, τί ὀφείλω ποιῆσαι μήπως ⁽⁵⁾  καὶ ἀπόλλω τὴν ψυχήν μου; Ὅτι οὐκ εἶχον οὐδὲ μίαν  θλίψιν οὐδὲ μίαν μέριμναν. Εἰ δὲ καὶ συνέβη με ἔχειν λογισ-  μόν, ἐλάμβανον τὸ πινακίδιον καὶ ἔγραφον τῷ γέροντι.  Διὰ γραμμάτων γὰρ ἠρώτων αὐτὸν πρὸ τοῦ με ὑπηρετῆσαι  αὐτῷ· καὶ πρὶν πληρώσω, γράφων ᾐσθανόμην κουφισμοῦ ⁽¹⁰⁾  καὶ ὠφελείας. Τοσαύτη ἦν ἡ ἀμεριμνία καὶ ἡ ἀνάπαυσις·  ἐγὼ δὲ μὴ εἰδὼς τὴν δύναμιν τῆς ἀρετῆς καὶ ἀκούων ὅτι διὰ  πολλῶν θλίψεων δεῖ ἡμᾶς εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν  οὐρανῶν, ἐφοβούμην ὅτι οὐκ εἶχον θλίψιν. Ὡς οὖν ἐδήλωσα  τῷ γέροντι, δηλοῖ μοι οὕτως· Μηδὲν θλιβῇς· σὺ οὐκ ⁽¹⁵⁾  ἔχεις πρᾶγμα, ἀλλ’ ἕκαστος βάλλων ἑαυτὸν εἰς ὑπακοὴν  Πατέρων, ταύτην τὴν ἀμεριμνίαν καὶ τὴν ἀνάπαυσιν ἔχει.