Staying Awake

Nam quod dicis eum vigilias execrari, facit et hoc contra vocabulum suum, ut velit dormire Vigilantius, et non audiat Salvatorem dicentem: Sic non potuistis una hora vigilare mecum? Vigilate et orate, ut non intretis in tentationem. Spiritus promptus est, sed caro infirma. Et in alio loco Propheta decantat: Media nocte surgebam, ut confiterer tibi, super judicia justitiae tuae. Dominum quoque in Evangelio legimus pernoctasse, et Apostolos clausos carcere tota nocte vigilasse, ut illis psallentibus terra quateretur, custos carceris crederet, magistratus et civitas terrentur. Loquitur Paulus: Orantioni insistite, vigilantes in ea. Et in alio loco: In vigiliis frequenter. Dormiat itaque Vigilantius, et ab exterminatore Aegypti cum Aegyptiis dormiens suffocetur. Nos dicamus cum David: Non dormitabit, neque dormiet, qui custodit Israel; ut veniat ad nos sanctus, et Air, qui interpretatur vigil. Et is quando propter peccata nostra dormiet, dicamus ad eum: Exsurge, quid dormitas, Domine? excitemusque illum, et navicula fluctuante, clamemus, 'Magister, salvos nos fac, perimus.' Sanctus Hieronymus,ex Epistola CIX, Ad Riparium Presbyterum

For since you tell me that he execrates vigils, in doing this, wishing to sleep, Vigilantius does what is contrary to his name, and he shall not hear the Saviour saying, 'You were not able to watch one hour with me? Watch and pray that you enter not into temptation. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.' 1 And in another place a Prophet sings: 'In the middle of the night I arose to confess to you because of the judgments of your righteousness.' 2 In the Gospel we read also how the Lord spent whole nights in prayer 3 and how the Apostles kept vigil all night long when they were shut up in prison, and that with their psalms the earth quaked, and the keeper of the prison believed, and the magistrates and citizens were terrified. 4 Paul says, 'Continue in prayer and watch in it.' 5 and in another place he says, 'Often in vigils.' 6 So let Vigilantius sleep and while sleeping may he be choked by the exterminator of Egypt and of the Egyptians. But let us say with David: 'Behold, He will neither sleep nor slumber who guards Israel.' 7 So will come to us the Holy One and, in Hebrew, 'Air' which is interpreted as the Watcher. 8  And when He by reason of our sins does sleep, let us say to Him: 'Awake, why do you sleep, O Lord,' 9 and let us rouse Him when our little ship is tossed by the waves  crying out, 'Master, save us, we perish.' 10 Saint Jerome, from Letter 109, To Riparius the Priest 1 Mt 26:40-41, Mk 14.37 2 Ps 118.62 3 Lk 6:12  4 Acts 16:25-38  5 Col 4:2  6 2 Cor 11:27   7 Ps 120.4  8 Dan 4.10  9 Ps 43.23 10 Mt 8.25

Sobering Up

Μὴ συγκοινωνεῖτε, φησὶν ὁ Ἀπόστολος, τοῖς ἀκάρποις ἔργοις τοῦ σκότους. Τίνα γὰρ καρπὸν εἴχετε ἐν τοῖς τοῦ νοητοῦ θανάτου ὀψωνίοις, ἐφ' οἶς νῠν ἐπαισχύνεσθε; Ἀληθῶς γὰρ ἄκαρπα τυγχάνει τὰ ἔργα τὰ πονηρὰ, καὶ πᾶσα σκοτεινὴ πρᾶξις. Ὅταν δὲ ἡ ψυχὴ δυνηθῇ ἀνανῆψαι, καὶ εἰς συναίσθησιν ἐλθεϊν, ἐρυθριᾷ μᾶλλον καὶ αἰσχύνεται ἐπὶ τοῖς ἁμαρηθεῖσιν ἐν τῇ μέθῃ τῆς κακίας, καὶ ἐναύγασμα εὑρίσκει σωφροσύνης.  Ἅγιος Νειλος, Βιβλιον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολὴ ΡΝ Γεροντιῳ Ἐκσπεκτωρι

'Do not,' says the Apostle, 'have a part in the fruitless works of darkness.' 1  For he who has such fruit in his mind has the wages of death, for which now you should be ashamed. For truly fruitless are wicked works and all deeds of darkness. And when the soul is able to be sober again it comes to perception of what was done, and then it is ashamed for its sins in the drunkenness of evil and it discovers the splendor of temperance.  Saint Nilus of Sinai, Book 1, Letter 40, To Gerontius 1 Ephes 5.11

Shipwrecks and Sterile Fruit

Ὁ παντὶ ἀνέμῳ τῆς διδασκαλίας περιφερόμενος, ναυαγήσας περὶ τὴν πίστιν, ὡς ὑπ' ἀνέμῳ ἑαυτόν τε καὶ ἄλλους ποιμάνας, ἀπώλεσεν· ἀπέλιπε γὰρ τῶν ἐντολῶν τὰς ὁδοὺς, τοῦ εἰπόντος, Ἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ἄμπελος, ὑμεῐς τὰ κλήματα, καὶ ὁ Πατήρ μου ὁ γεωργός. Ὁ μὴ συνάγων σὺν ταῖς ἀρεταϊς τὴν θείαν γνῶσιν, οὗτος οὐ συνάγει τῆς αἰνωνίου βασιλείας τὴν ἀθάνατον εὑκαρπίαν· ἀκαρπία δέ ἐστι κακία καὶ ἄγνοια. Ὠριγένης, Εκλογαι Εἰς Παροιμίας

He who is carried away by every wind of teaching 1 makes a shipwreck of the faith and like a storm he ruins those others that he shepherds. For he has left the way of His commandments who said, 'I am the vine and you are the branches,' 2 and 'my Father is the farmer.' 3 He who does not heap up Divine knowledge with the virtues, does not heap up the immortal fruit of the eternal kingdom. He is sterile, wicked and ignorant. 1 Origen, On Proverbs, Fragments 1 Prov 9.12 LXX 2 Jn 15.5 3. Jn 15.1

Knowledge and Goodness

μὴ ἔλεγχε κακούς, ἵνα μὴ μισῶσίν σε    Οὐ δεῖ ἁμαρτάνοντας ἐλέγχειν τοὺς κακούς, μᾶλλον δὲ περὶ φόβου θεοῦ αὐτοῖς διαλέγεσθαι, ὅστις πείθει αὐτοὺς ἀποστῆναι κακίας.   τὸ δὲ γνῶναι νόμον διανοίας ἐστὶν ἀγαθῆς   Εἰ «τὸ γνῶναι τὸν νόμον διανοίας ἐστὶν ἀγαθῆς», καὶ τὸ ποιῆσαι τὴν ἐντολὴν διανοίας ἐστὶν ἀγαθῆς. Πλὴν πρότερον τὸ ποιῆσαι τὴν ἐντολὴν τοῦ γνῶναι τὸν νόμον, εἴπερ ἡ γνῶσις μετὰ τὴν κάθαρσιν προσγίνεσθαι πέφυκεν.   ὃς ἐρείδεται ἐπὶ ψεύδεσιν, οὗτος ποιμανεῖ ἀνέμους· ὁ δ' αὐτὸς διώξεται ὄρνεα πετόμενα   Παντὶ ἀνέμῳ τῆς διδασκαλίας περιφερόμενος καὶ ναυαγήσας περὶ τὴν πίστιν.   ἀπέλιπεν γὰρ ὁδοὺς τοῦ ἑαυτοῦ ἀμπελῶνος· τοὺς δὲ ἄξονας τοῦ ἰδίου γεωργίου πεπλάνηται   Ἀπέλιπεν γὰρ τὴν ἄμπελον τὴν εἰποῦσαν· «ἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ἄμπελος, ὑμεῖς τὰ κλήματα», καί· «ὁ πατήρ μου ὁ γεωργός ἐστιν.»   συνάγει δὲ χερσὶν ἀκαρπίαν  Ἀκαρπία ἐστὶ κακία καὶ ἄγνοια. Εὐάγριος ὁ Ποντικός, Σχολια Εἰς Τας Παροιμιας

Do not despise the wicked lest they hate you. 1 It is not necessary to despise the evil of the sinner, rather speak to them of the fear of God which will persuade them to refrain from evil. To have knowledge of the law is good discernment. 2 If to have knowledge of the law is good discernment, then to perform the commandments is good discernment. But before one can perform the commandments is knowledge of the law, and knowledge comes after the work of purification has been done. He who fixes himself on deceit, is like one who herds the winds. This one pursues birds in flight 3 And by every wind of teaching they are carried off and their faith is shipwrecked. 4   For he has abandoned the paths of his vineyard and the axles of his fields have wandered. 3   For he has abandoned the vineyard of which it is said, I am the vine and you are the branches, 5 and My father is the farmer. 6 And the gathering of the hand is fruitless 3 Fruitless is evil and ignorance.   Evagrius Ponticus, Scholia on Proverbs 1 Prov 9.8 2 Prov 9.10 3 Prov 9.12 LXX 4 cf Ephes 4.14 5 Jn 15.5  6. Jn 15.1

A Damaged Monk

Ἐγγὺς τούτων ἐωράλαμεν καὶ ἕτερον ἀναχωρητὴν ὁμοίως καὶ αὐτὸν ἐνοικοῡντα σπηλαίοις. Οὖτος οἶστρῳ κενοδοξίας ἐμπαιζόμενος ὑπὸ ὀνειράτων ἀντενέπαιζεν τοῖς πρὸς αὐτὸν παραγινομένοις καὶ ἀπατωμένοις. Ἄφρων γεγονὼς κατὰ τὸ γεγραμμένον, τοῖς ἐνυπνίοις ἀναπτερούμενος, ἀνέμους ποιμαίνων, καὶ διώκων σκιάς. Καὶ τὴν μὲν κατὰ τὸ σῶμα σωφροσύνην ἐκέκτητο· καὶ διὰ τὸ γῆρας λοιπὸν καὶ διὰ τὸν χρόνον, τάχα δὲ καὶ διὰ τὴν κενοδοξίαν, τὴν δὲ κατ' ἀρετὴν φρένα ἀπώλεσεν, διαφθαρεὶς ὑπὸ τῆς ἀκαθάρτου κενοδοξίας, καὶ ἐξωκείλας δι' αὐτῆς τῆς ἐνθέσμου πολιτείας. Παλλάδιος, Ἡ Προς Λαυσον Ἱστορια

Near these men we saw also another anchorite dwelling in a cave in similar fashion. He was mocked in dreams by the madness of vainglory and he himself took to mocking his neighbours as men who deceived themselves. 'Fools,' as it is written, 'who would fly away in dreams, herd the winds and chase shadows' 1 And yet he possessed bodily continence on account of his age and his long time in his state, and perhaps it was also thanks to his vainglory, but his mind was ruined in respect of virtue, corrupted owing to the uncleanliness of his vainglory, and by it he was expelled from any lawful state Palladius of Galatia, Lausiac History, 1 cf Prov 9.12 LXX

Sin and Neighbours

Λέγουσι δὲ ἐν ταϊς Παραδόσεσι Ματθίαν τὸν ἀπόστολον παρ' ἕκαστα εἰρηκένι, ὅτι, ' Ἐὰν ἐκλεκτοῦ γείτων ἁμαρτήσῃ, ἥμαρτεν ὁ ἐκλεκτός· εἰ γὰρ οὕτως ἑαυτὸν ἦγεν ὡς ὁ Λόγος ὑπαγορεύει, κατῃδέσθη ἄν αὐτοῦ τὸν βίον καὶ ὁ γείτων εἰς τὸ μὴ ἁμαρτεῖν.' Κλήμης ὁ Ἀλεξανδρεύς, Στρωματεων, Λόγος Ἑβδομος, Κεφ ΙΓ'

They say in The Traditions that Matthias the Apostle constantly said, 'If the neighbour of an elect man sin, the elect man has sinned, for if he had  conducted himself as the Word commands, his neighbour in awe of his life would not have sinned.' Clement of Alexandria, Stromata, Book 7, Ch 13.

Treasure and the Man

Ὅποι ἐστὶν ὁ Θησαυρός σου, φησὶν, ἐκει ἔσται καὶ ἡ καρδία σου. Οἶα γὰρ ἂν ᾗ τὰ ἐπιτυδεύματα, καὶ ὅποι, τοιοῦτο πάντως καὶ τὸ φρόνημα, καὶ αἱ μνῆμαι, καὶ ὁ νοῦς αὐτοῦ ἵδρυται. Μᾶλλον τοιγάρτοι τῷ οὐρανίῳ, καὶ ἀσυλήτῳ θησαυρῷ νηφόντως προσεκτέον. Ἅγιος Νειλος, Βιβλιον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολὴ ΠΛΔ' Σεραπιωνι Πρεσβυτερῳ

'Where your treasure is, He says, there shall be your heart.' 1 For as with his interests, where they tend, so the man will be, his mind, his memory and his understanding. Rather, then, to heaven where there is inviolate treasure prudently turn your soul. Saint Nilus of Sinai, Book 1, Letter 134, To the Priest Serapion 1 Mt 6.21

A Rich Young Man

Ἐξῆς δὲ τούτοις λέγεται, ὅτι ' Ἀκούσας τὸν λόγον ὁ νεανίσκος, ἀπῆλθε λυπούμενος· ἥν γὰρ ἔχων κτήματα πολλά. Καὶ ὅψει γε, ὡς πρὸς τὴν ἀναγωγὴν τίνα, τρόπον δυσαποσπάστως ἔχομεν τοῦ φρονεῖν τὸν πλοῦτον ἀγαθὸν εἶναι, ἤ τὴν κάτω δόξαν· ἀλλὰ καὶ μᾶλλον θέλομεν, ἐπεὶ ἀγαπῶμεν τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν, τυχεῖν τῶν φαύλως ἐπιθυμουμένων, ἢ ἀπαλλαγῆναι τῆς ἐπιθυμίας· καὶ μᾶλλον περιπεσεῖν οἶς φανταζόμεθα φοβεροῖς, ἥπερ ἀποθέσθαι τὸν ἐχθρὸν τῷ φόβῳ τοῦ Θεοῦ φόβον. Ἀλλ' οὐδὲ πρεσβύτερός τις εἰσῆκται καθεστηκὼς, οὐδὲ ἀνὴρ καταρήσας τὰ τοῦ νηπίου, ἀλλὰ νεανίσκος ὁ τὸν λόγον ἀκούσας, καὶ ἀπελθὼν λυπούμενος. Τοιοῦτος γὰρ ἧν τὴν ψυχὴν, διὸ καὶ καταλιπὼν τὸν Ἰησοὺν ἀπῆλθεν· ἐπὶ ψόγῳ γὰρ εἴρηται τό· 'Ἀπῆλθε,' καὶ ' ἀπῆλθε λυπούμενος, λύπην' τὴν τοῦ κόσμου, ' τὴν θάνατον κατεργαζομένην.' Τίς γὰρ ἀγαπῶν τὸ ὀργίζεσθαι, καὶ τὸ λυπεῖσθαι, ἔχων κτήματα πολλὰ ἂπερ ἠγαπα, διὸ ἀπῆλθε λυπούμενος, καὶ ὅσα ἀπὸ κακίας ἧν κεκρατηκότα τῆς ψυχῆς αὐτοῦ; Εἰ μέντοι ἐπὶ τῆς ἱστορίας μένοις κατά τινα τῶν προαποδεδομένων διήγησιν, ἐξ ἡμισείας εὕροις ἄν ἐπαινετὸν, καὶ ἐξ ἡμισείας ψεκτὸν τὸν νεανίσκον τοῦτον· ᾗ μὲν γὰρ οὐκ ἐμοίχευσεν, οὐδὲ ἐφόνευσεν, οὐδὲ ἔκλεψεν, οὐδὲ ἐψευδοματρύρησεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἥδη νεανίσκος ὥν ἐτίμησε τὸν πατέρα καὶ τὴν μητέρα, καὶ ἐλυπήθη ἐπὶ τοῖς τὴν τελειότητα ὑποτιθεμένοις λόγοις τοῦ Ἰησοῦ, καὶ ἐπαγγελλομένοις αὐτὴν, εἰ ἀποδοῖτο τὰ ὑπάρχοντα, ἀστεῖόν τι ἧν ἐν αὐτῷ· ᾗ δὲ ἀπῆλθεν ἀπὸ τοῦ Ἰησοῦ λυπούμενος διὰ τὰ κτήματα, δέον αὐτὸν χαίρειν, ὅτι ἀντ' ἐκείνων ἔμελλεν ἔχειν θησαυρὸν ἐν οὐρανῳ, καὶ ἀκολουθῶν τῷ Ἰησοῦ κατ' ἴχνη βαίνειν υἱοῦ Θεοῦ, ψεκτὸς ἡν. Ὀριγεν, Κατὰ Ματθαιον Ἐξηγητικων, Τομος ΙΕ'

After these thing it is said 'When the young man heard the word, he went away grieving, for he had many possessions' 1 And see, as though in anagogical terms, we have become stubbornly fixed in thinking that wealth is good, rather than the opinion below. But even more we wish, since we love even the desire, to touch upon those things that are desired worthlessly, or rather to be freed from the desire, and still more the fall into those fears we imagine which heap up fear of the enemy rather than the fear of God. Now he was not introduced as an elder in a mature state, nor as a man disdaining the things of childhood, but as a youth who hears the word and goes away grieving. For such is his soul, since indeed after leaving Jesus he went away, for it is said as a matter of blame that 'He went away' and 'he went away grieving the grief' that is 'of the world' which produces' death' 2 For someone who loves inclines to anger and to grief, and having many possessions which he loved, since he went away grieving, what evil was it that wrought this state of soul? Attending first to the literal level of the explanation of things previously set forth, you would find half a measure of praise and half of blame given to this youth. For he did not commit adultery, not murder, nor steal, nor bear false witness, but, being a young man, he honoured his mother and father, and yet he was grieved at the teachings of Jesus set forth about perfection and what was promised to him, that if he would give away his property, there would be something beneficial for him, and as he went away from Jesus grieving on account of his possessions, he became blameworthy, for he should have rejoiced, because instead of these things he would have had treasure in heaven, even following Jesus, walking in the footsteps of the son of God. Origen, Commentary on Matthew, Book 15 1 Mt 19.22 2 2 Cor 7.10

A Praiseworthy Youth

Cyprianus presbyteris et diaconibus et plebi universae salutem.  In ordinationibus clericis, fratres charissimi, solemus vos ante consulere et mores ac merita singulorum communi consilio panderare. Sed expectanda non sunt testimonia humana cum praecedunt divina suffragia. Aurelois frater noster, illustris adolescens, a Domino jam probatus et Deo charus, in annis adhuc novellus, sed virtutis ac fidei laude provectus, minor in aetatis suae indole, sed major in honore, gemino hic agone certavit; bis confessus, et bis confessionis suae victoria gloriosus, et quando vicit in cursu factus extorris, et cum denuo certamine fortiore pugnavit, triumphator et victor in praelio passionis. Quoties adversarius provocare servos Dei voluit, toties promptissimus ac fortissimus miles et pugnavit et vicit. Parum fuerat sub oculis ante paucorum, quando extorris fiebat, congressum fuisse, meruit et in foro congredi clariore virtute, ut post magistratus etiam proconsulem vinceret, et post exilium tormenta superaret. Nec invenio quid in eo praedicare plus debeam, gloriam vulnerum, an verecundiam morum, quod honore virtutis insignis est, an quod pudoris admiratione laudabilis. Ita et dignitate excelsus est et humilitate submissus, ut appareat illum divinitus reservatum qui ad ecclesiasticam disciplinam caeteris esset exemplo, quomodo servi Dei in confessione virtutibus vincerent, post confessionem moribus eminerent. Merebatur talis clericae ordinationis ulteriores gradus et incrementa majora, non de annis suis sed de meritis aestimandus. Sed interim placuit ut ab officio lectionis incipiat, quia et nihil magis congruit voci quae Dominum gloriosa praedictatione confessa est, quam celebrandis divinis lectionibus personare; post verba sublimia quae Christi martyrium prolucuta sunt, Evangelium Christi legere, unde martyres fiunt; ad pulpitum post catastam venire, illic fuisse conspicuum gentilium multitudini, hic a fratribus conspici, illic auditum esse eum miraculo circumstantis populi, hic cum gaudio fraternitatis audiri. Hunc igitur, fratres dilectissimi, a me at a collegis qui  praesentes aderant ordinatum sciatis. Quod vos scio et libenter amplecti et optare tales in ecclesia nostra quamplurimos ordinari. Et quoniam semper gaudium properet, nec potest moras ferre laetitia, dominico legit. interim nobis, id est, auspicatis est pacem dum dedicat lectionem. Vos orationibus frequenter insistite, et preces nostras vestris precibus adjuvate, ut Domini misericordia favens nobis, cito plebi suae et sacerdotem reddat incolumem et martyrem cum sacerdote lectorem. Opto vos, fratres charissimi, in Deo Patre et Christo Jesu semper bene valere. Sanctus Cyprianus, Epistula XXXIII, Ad Clerum et Plebem

Cyprian to the elders and deacons, and to the whole people, greeting. Concerning the ordinations of clergy, beloved brethren, we are accustomed to consult you beforehand and with common advice weigh the character and merits of each one. But we must not wait for human testimonies when the Divine approval precedes. Aurelius, our brother, an illustrious youth, already tested by the Lord and dear to God, in years still  young, but in the praise of virtue and of faith mature, less in the nature of his age, but greater in honour, has contended here in a double contest, twice he has confessed and twice been glorious in the victory of his confession, both when he conquered in the course and was banished, and then when he fought in a harder struggle he was triumphant and victor in the battle of suffering. As many times as the adversary wished to call forth the servants of God, so often this most prompt and brave soldier fought and prevailed. It would have been a small thing for the eyes of few when he was banished but he merited also in the forum an engagement with a more illustrious virtue so that after the magistrates he might also triumph over the proconsul, and, after exile, might overcome tortures. Nor do I know what I should speak most of in him, the glory of his wounds or the modesty of his character, that he is distinguished by the honour of his virtue, or praiseworthy for the admirableness of his modesty. As he is so excellent in dignity, so he is lowly in humility, so that it appears that he is divinely reserved to be an example to the rest for ecclesiastical discipline, of how the servants of God in confession should by their virtues conquer and after confession be conspicuous for their character. Such a person deserved higher degrees of clerical ordination, greater rank, not on account of his years but because of his merits, but in the meantime it pleased that he should begin with the office of reading because nothing is more suitable for the voice which has confessed the Lord in glorious utterance than to speak of Him in the renowned Divine readings, than, after the sublime words which spoke for witness of Christ, to read the Gospel of Christ whence martyrs are made, to come to the desk after the scaffold, from there where one is conspicuous to the multitude of the Gentiles, to be here seen beheld by the brethren, there to have been heard with amazement by the surrounding people, here to be heard with the joy of the brotherhood. Know, then, most beloved brethren, that this man by me and by my colleagues who were then present has been ordained. I know that you will gladly welcome this and wish that as many such as him be ordained in our church. And because joy is always hasty and gladness can brook no delay, he reads on the Lord's day. Meanwhile, for us there was  a favourable peace while he was dedicated to the office of a reader. Be frequently urgent in supplications and assist our prayers by yours that the mercy of the Lord favouring us He may quickly return to their people the unharmed and those who suffered with the priest and the reader. I wish, beloved brethren in God the Father and in Jesus Christ, that you always be well. Saint Cyprian, Letter 33, To the Clergy and the People

The Spirit and the Incomprehensible

Τὸ Πνεῦμα ἔλαβες, τὸ ἑρευνοῦν καὶ τὰ βάθη τοῦ θεοῦ, οὐχ ἵνα καταλάβῃς φύσιν Θεοῦ, ὡς λέγει Εὐνόμιος ὁ παραπλὴξ, ἀλλ' ἵνα βαθέως καὶ σοφὼς δοξάζῃς τὸν Κύριον· φησὶ γὰρ ὁ Ἀπόστολος, ὅτι Ἐγὼ οὕπω λογίζομαι κατειληφέναι, διώκω δὲ, εἲγε καὶ καταλάβω. Ἅγιος Νειλος, Βιβλιον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολὴ ΙϚ', Πτολεμαιῳ Συνκλητικῳ

The Spirit which you have received searches the depths of God, 1 not that you comprehend the Divine nature, as the demented Eunomius says, but that wisely and deeply you might glorify the Lord; for as the Apostle said, 'I do not think I have understood but I seek that I might understand.' 2 Saint Nilus of Sinai, Book 1, Letter 16, To Ptolemaeus 1 1 Cor 2.10  2 Phil 3.12

Knowledge Will Pass Away

Τί οὖν ἐστιν ὅ φησιν ὁ Παῦλος, καὶ περὶ τίνος, ὅτι Ἡ γνῶσις καταργηθήσεται; Οὐ περὶ τῆς παντελοῦς, ἀλλὰ περὶ τῆς μερικῆς τοῦτο γνῶσι, κατάργησιν τὴν ἐπὶ τὸ βέλτιον πρόοδον λέγων, ὡς τὴν μερικὴν καταργουμένην μηκέτι εἶναι μερικὴν, ἀλλὰ τελείαν. Καθάπερ γὰρ ἡ ἡλικία τοῦ παιδίου καταργεῖται, οὐκ ἀφανιζομένης τῆς οὐσίας, ἀλλ' αὐξανομένης τῆς ἡλικίας, καὶ εἰς ἄνδρα τέλειον ἰκβαινούσης· οὕτω καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γνώσεως γίνεται. Ἡ μικρὰ, φησιν, αὔτη οὐκέτι ἂν εἴη μικρὰ, διὰ τῶν ἐξῆς γενομένη μεγάλη· τοῦτο ἔστι τὸ, καταργεῖται· καὶ τοῦτο διὰ τῶν ἐξῆς σαφέστερον ἡμῖν ἐδήλωσεν. Ἵνα γὰρ ἀκούσας ὅτι καταργεῖται, μὴ κατάλυσιν παντελῆ νομίσῃς εἶναι, ἀλλ ὰὔξησίν τινα καὶ πρὸς τὸ βέλτιον ἐπίδοσιν, εἰπὼν καταργεῖτα, ἐπήγαγεν· ' Ἐκ μέρους γὰρ γινώσκομεν, καὶ ἐκ μέρους προφητεύομεν· ὅταν δὲ ἐλθῃ τὸ τέλειον, τότε τὸ ἐκ μέρους καταργηθήσεται· ὡς μηκέτι εἶναι αὐτὸ ἐκ μέρους, ἀλλὰ τέλειον. Ὥωτε τὸ ἀτελὲς αὐτοῦ καταργεῖται, ὡς μηκέτι εἶναι ἀτελὲς, ἀλλὰ τέλειον. Ἡ τοίνυν κατάργησις αὔτη πλήρωσις ἐστι, καὶ πρὸς τὸ μεῖζον ἐπίδοσις.    Ἅγιος Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος Περὶ Ἀκαταληπτου

What, then, is this which Paul says, and about what, when he says, 'Knowledge will pass away?' 1 This is not about complete but about partial knowledge; and he says that the passing away is an advance to something better, that is, when the partial knowledge by passing away is no longer partial but perfect. For as the age of childhood passes away but the essence does not disappear, so that with increase of age there is attainment of the perfect man, so it is with knowledge. This little knowledge, he says, would no longer be little when it has become great through growth; this is the meaning of 'passes away,' and this he wisely clarifies for us in what follows. For having heard that 'it passes away' you should not think of this as an utter dissolution but as a growth and an advancement to something better, and so saying, 'It passes away' he went on to add, 'Our knowledge is imperfect and our speaking about God is imperfect. When the perfect comes, then the imperfect will pass away;' 2 so there is no longer something partial but something perfect. Thus the imperfect thing passes away and the imperfect no longer is, but the perfect is. The passing away, then, is a fulfillment and advancement to what is better.  Saint John Chrysostom, On The Incomprehensible 1 1 Cor 13.8 2 1 Cor 13. 9-10

Growth and Perfection

Δοκεῖ μοι, ὅτι ὥσπερ ἐν τοῖς ἀνθρωπίνοις σώμασίν ἐστι μεγέθη διάφορα, ὥς τινας μὲν εἶναι  μικροὺς, ἑτέρους δὲ μεγάλους, καὶ ἄλλους μεταξύ· καὶ πάλιν εἶναι μικρῶν διαφορὰς ἐπὶ πλεῖον ἤ ἔλαττον, ὄντων μικρῶν,  ὁμοίως καὶ μεγάλων, καὶ τῶν μεταξύ οὕτως καὶ ἐν ταῖς τῶν ἀνθρώπων ψυχαῖς ἐστί τινα χαρακτηρίζοντα τὴν μικρότητα αὐτῶν, καὶ ἄλλα τὴν, ἵν' οὔτως εἴπω, μεγαλειότητα, καὶ ἀπαξαπλῶς, ἀνάλογον τοῖς σωματικοῖς, τὴν μεταξύτητα. Ἀλλ' ἐπὶ μὲν τῶν σωμάτων οὐ παρὰ τὴν αἰτίαν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου, ἀλλὰ παρὰ τοὺς σπερματικοὺς λόγους, ὁ μέν τις ἐστὶ βραχὺς καὶ μικρὸς, ὁ δὲ μέγας, ὁ δὲ μεταξύ· ἐπὶ δὲ τῶν ψυχῶν, κιὰ τὸ ἡμῖν, καὶ αἱ τοιαίδε πράξεις, καὶ τὸ τοιοῦτον ἦθος τὴν αἰτίαν ἔχει τοῦ μέγαν τινας εἶναι, ἤ μικρὸν, ἤ ἐν τοῖς μεταξὺ τυγχάνειν· καὶ ἔστιν ἐκ τῶν ἐφ' ἡμῖν ἥτοι προκόπτειν τῇ ἡλικί ἐπιδιδόντα εἰς μέγεθος, ἢ μὴ προκόπτοντα εἰναι βραχύν. Και οὕτω γε ἀκούω περὶ τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἀναλαβόντος ἀνθρωπίνην ψυχὴν, τό· ' Ὁ Ἰησοῦς προέκοπτεν.' Ὡς γὰρ ἐκ τοῦ ἑφ' ἡμῖν τῆς ψυχῆς αὐτοῦ ἧν ἡ ἑν σοφίᾳ προκοπὴ καὶ χάριτι, οὑτω καὶ ἑν ἡλικίᾳ, καὶ ὁ Ἀπόστολος· ' Μέχρι καταντήσωμεν πάντες εἰς ἄνδρα τέλειον, εἰς μέτρον ἡλικίας τοῦ πληρώματος τέλειον, κατὰ τὸν ἔσω ἂνθρωπον νομιστέον τὸν διαβάντα τὰ τοῦ νηπίου, καὶ φθὰσαντα ἐπὶ τὸν ἂνδρα, καὶ καταργήσαντα τὰ τοῦ νηπίου, καὶ ἁπαξαπλῶς τελειώσαντα τὰ τοῦ ἀνδρός· οὕτω δ' ὑποληπτέον εἶναί τι καὶ μέτρον πνευματικῆς ἡλικίαη, ἐφ' ὅ ἡ τελειοτάτη δύναται φθάσαι ψυχὴ ἐκ τοῦ μεγαλύνειν τὸν Κύριον, καὶ μεγάλη γίνεσθαι. Ὠριγένης, Κατὰ Ματθαιον Ἐξηγητικων, Τομος ΙΓ'

It seems to me that as among the bodies of men there are differences of size, so some are little and others great and others of middling height, and, again, there are differences among the little, as they are more or less little, and it is so with the great, and with those of middle height, so also among the souls of men there are some things which give them the mark of littleness, and other things, one may say, the mark of greatness, and generally, after the analogy of bodily things, other things the mark of mediocrity. But for bodies this is not caused by the action of men but for genetic reasons, that one is short and little, another great, and another is middling, but for souls it is we, our actions of such a kind and habits of such a kind, who give the cause why we are  great or little or middling, and it is we who because we advance in stature increase our size, or because we do not advance are short. And so indeed I understand what is said of Jesus having taken a human soul, 'Jesus advanced.' 1 For as with us, there was an advance of His soul in wisdom and grace, and so also in stature, and the Apostle says, 'Until we all attain to man fully grown, to the perfect measure of the age of fullness,' 2 according to which it should be thought that he is a man who has gone through the things of the child, and has reached the stage of the man, and has left behind the things of the child, and generally, has perfected the things of the man. And so it should be supposed that there is a certain measure of spiritual stature to which the most perfect soul is able to reach by magnifying the Lord, and become great. Origen, Commentary on Matthew, Book 13 1 Lk 2:52 2Eph 4:13

Saving Children

Παντὶ τοίνυν σθένει ὁ τῆς ἀνθρωπότητος Παιδαγωγὸς, ὁ Θεοῐς ἡμῶν Λόγος, πάσῃ καταχρώμενος σοφίας μηχανῇ, σώζειν ἐπιβέβληται τοὺς νηπίους, νουθετῶν, ἐπιτιμῶν, ἐπιπλήττων, ἐλέγχων, ἀπειλούμενος, ἰώμενος, ἐπαγγελλόμενος, χαριζόμενος· πολλοῖς τισὶν οἰονεὶ χαλινοῖς τὰς ἀλόγους τῆς ἀνθρωπότητος δεσμεύων ὁρμάς. Συνελόντι γοῦν εἰπεῖν, οὕτως ὁ Κύριος πρὸς ἡμᾶς, ὡς καὶ ἡμεῖς πρὸς τὰ τέκνα ἡμῶν. ' Τέκνα σοί ἐστι; παίδευσιν αὐτὰ, ἡ Σοπφία παραινεῖ· καὶ κάμψον αὐτὰ ἐκ νεότητεσ αὐτῶν. Θυγατέρες σοι εἰσι; πρόσεχε τῷ σώματι αὐτῶν, καὶ μὴ ἰλαρώσῃς πρὸς αὐτὰς τὸ πρόσωπιν σου.' Καί τοι τὰ τέκνα ἡμῶν, υἱούς τε καὶ θυγατέρας, σφόδρα καὶ ὑπὲρ πᾶν ὁτιοῦν ἀγαπῶμεν. Ἐπεὶ δ' οἱ μὲν πρὸς χάριν ὁμιλοῦντες, ὀλίγον ἀγαπῶσιν ὅ μὴ λυνποῡσιν, οἱ δὲ πρὸς ὠφέλειαν ἐπιστύφοντες, εἰ καὶ παραυτίκα λυπηροὶ, ἀλλὰ εἰς τὸν ἔπειτα εὐεργετοῦσιν αἰῶνα· ού τὴν παραυτίκα ἡδονὴν ὁ Κύριος, ἀλλὰ τὴν μέλλουσαν ἐσκόπησε τρυφήν. Κλήμης ὁ Ἀλεξανδρεύς, Ὁ Παιδαγωγός, Λογὸς Πρῶτος, Κεφ. Θ

With all His power, The Instructor of humanity, the Divine Word, employing all the means of wisdom, attends to the saving of the children, admonishing, upbraiding, blaming, chiding, reproving, threatening, healing, promising, favouring, by many reins, as it were, curbing the irrational impulses of humanity. Indeed to speak concisely, the Lord acts towards us as we do towards our children. 'Do you have children? Correct them,' Wisdom counsels, 'and bend them from their youth. Do you have daughters? Attend to their body, and let not your face brighten towards them,' 1 And this even though we love our children exceedingly, both sons and daughters, above anything else. For they who speak to please have little love for the one they would not pain, but those who prescribe bitter medicines, though they presently cause pain, do good forever. It is not present pleasure, but future happiness, that the Lord would have you look to. Clement of Alexandria, The Teacher, Book 1,Ch 9.  1 Sirach 7:23-24 LXX

Raising a Daughter

Sextus femineus suo jungatur sexui: nesciat, imo timeat cum pueris ludere. Nullum impudicum verbum noverit; et si forte in tumultu familiae discurrentis aliquid audiat, non intelligat. Matris nutum pro verbis ac monitis et pro imperio habeat. Amet ut parentem, subjiciatur ut dominae, timeat ut magistram. Cum autem virgunculam rudem et edentulam, septimus aetatis annus exceperit, et ceperit erubescere, scire quid taceat, dubitare quid dicat: discat memoriter Psalterium, et usque ad annos pubertatis, libros Salomonis: Evangelia, Apostolos, et Prophetas sui cordis thesaurum faciat. Nec liberius procedat ad publicum, nec semper ecclesiarum quaerat celebritatem. In cubiculo suo totas delicias habeat. Nunmquam juvenculos, nunquam cincinnatos videat, vocis dulcedines per aurem animam vulnerantes, puellerumque lacivia repellantur. Quae quanto licentius adeunt, tanto difficilius evitantur: et quod didicerunt, secreto doceat, inclusamque Danaem vulgi sermonibus violant. Sit ei magistra comes, paedagoga custos: non multo vina dedita: non, juxta Apostolum, otiosa atque verbosa; sed sobria, gravis, lanifica, et ea tantum loquens, quae animum puellarem ad virtutem instituant, Ut enim aqua in areola digitum sequitur praecedentem, ita aetas mollis, et tenera in utramque partem flexibilis est, et quocumque duxeris, trahitur. Solent lascivi et comptuli juvenes blandimentis, affabilitate, munusculis, aditum sibi per nutrices aut alumnas quaerere; et cum clementer intraverit, de scintillis incendia concitare, paulatimque peroficere ad impudentiam: et nequaquam posse prohiberi, illo in se versiculo comprobato: 'Aegre reprehendas, quod sinis consuescere.' Pudet dicere: et tamen dicendum est: Nobiles feminae, quae nobiliores habuere neglectui procos, vilissimae conditionis hominibus, et servulis copulantur; ac sub nomine religionis, et umbra continentiae, interdum deserunt viros, Helenae sequuntur Alexandros, nec Menelaos pertimescunt. Videntur haec, plaguntur, et non vindicantur: quia multitudo peccantium peccandi licentiam subministrat. Proh nefas, orbis terrarum ruit, in nobis peccata non ruunt. Sanctus Hieronymus, ex Epistola CXXVIII, Ad Gaudentium

A girl should associate with her own sex, she should not know boys, indeed she should fear to play with them. She should never hear an unclean word, and if amid the bustle of the house she should hear one, she should not understand it. Her mother's nod should suffice for words and warnings and commands. She should love her as a parent, obey her as a mistress, and reverence her as a teacher. She is now a toothless raw little girl, but with seven years passing, she should take to blushing knowing what she should not say and doubtful as to what she should say. Let her learn the Psalter by heart and in the years of adolescence the books of Solomon. The Gospels, the Apostles and the Prophets should be made the treasure of her heart. She should not go out in public too freely, nor always seek out crowded churches. In her own room should be all her pleasure. She must never look at young men, never at fashionable types, and the sweet voices which wound the soul through the ears and loose behaviour of young women must be driven away. The more freedom of access such women possess, so much harder is it to avoid them and what they have learned they will teach in secret, and our secluded Dana will be violated by vulgar talk. Let her have for guardians a companion a mistress and a governess, one not much given to wine, or in the Apostle's words idle and a gossip, but sober, grave, a spinner of wool, one who will establish a girl's soul in virtue. For as water follows a finger drawn through sand, so one of soft and tender years can be bent in two ways, and wherever you lead she is drawn. It is customary for impudent and well groomed young men to seek access for themselves by nurses or dependants with blandishments, friendliness, little gifts, and when they have thus gently effected their approach they blow up fire from the sparks and little by little advance to shamelessness, and it is impossible to stop it then, the verse being proved true: 'It is ill rebuking what you have allowed to become a habit.' I am ashamed to say it and yet it must be said: noble ladies who have rejected more noble suitors join themselves to men of the lowest condition and even with slaves, and sometimes in the name of religion and under the cloak of continence they abandon their husbands, Helen follows Paris without any fear of Menelaus. These things are seen, lamented, and not punished, for the multitude of sinners grants tolerance to it. For shame, the world goes to ruin, but in us sin does not. Saint Jerome, from Letter 128, To Gaudentius

Advice on Seeking

Nobis etsi quaerendum esset adhuc et semper, ubi tamen quaeri oportet? Apud haereticos? Ubi omnia extranea et adversaria nostrae veritatis ad quos vetamur accedere? Quis servus cibaria ab extraneo, ne dicam ab inimico domini sui sperat? Quis miles ab infoederatis, ne dicam ab hostibus regibus donatiuum et stipendium captat nisi plane desertor et transfuga et rebellis?  Etiam anus illa intra tectum suum dragmam requirebat, etiam pulsator ille vicini ianuam tundebat, etiam vidua illa non inimicum licet durum iudicem interpellabat. Nemo inde instrui potest unde destruitur; nemo ab eo inluminatur a quo contenebratur. Quaeramus ergo in nostro et a nostris et de nostro: idque dumtaxat quod salva regula fidei potest in quaestionem devenire. Tertullianus, De Praescriptione Haereticorum

Even if we must still seek, and always, yet where should one seek? Amongst the heretics, where all things are foreign and opposed to our own truth, and to whom we are forbidden to draw near? What servant looks for food from a stranger, or hopes for it from an enemy of his master? What soldier expects to obtain bounty and pay from kings who are unallied, I might  say hostile, unless he be a deserter, and a runaway and a rebel? Even that old woman searched for the drachma beneath her own roof, 1 that knocker kept knocking at his neighbour's door, 2 that widow made appeal to a stern but not a hostile judge. 3 No one is able to be instructed by that by which he is destroyed, no man is illuminated by that which is wrapped in darkness. Let us seek, therefore in that which is ours and from ours and by ours:  only insofar as that which is in question preserves the rule of faith. Tertullian, Prescription against Heretics 1 Lk 15.8 2 Lk 11 5-13 3 Lk 18 1-8

Grace, Freedom and Sin

Atticus. Constat ergo inter nos, in bonis operibus post propriam voluntatem, Dei nos niti auxilio, in malis diaboli. Critobulus. Constat, et super hoc nulla contentio est. Atticus. Male ergo sentiunt, qui per singulas res quas agimus, Dei auferunt adjutorium, et illud quod Psalmista canit: Nisi Dominus aedificaverit domum, in vanum laborant qui aedificant eam. Nisi Dominus custodierit civitatem, frustra vigilat qui custodit eam ; et caetera hujuscemodi, perversis interpretationibus, immo risu dignis, ad alios sensus detorquere nituntur. Critobulus. Quid mihi necesse est contra alios dicere, cum meum responsum habeas? Atticus. Tuum responsum cujusmodi? Eos bene sentire, an male? Critobulus. Et quae me cogit necessitas, ut contra alios promam sententiam? Atticus. Disputationis ordo et ratio veritatis. An ignoras omne quod dicitur, aut esse, aut non esse; et aut inter bona, aut mala debere numerari? Hoc ergo de quo interrogo, aut bene dici, aut male, ingratis tibi fatendum est. Critobulus. Si in singulis rebus quas gerimus, Dei utendum est adjutorio, ergo et calamum temperare ad scribendum, et temperatum pumice terere, manumque aptare litteris, tacere, loqui, sedere, stare, ambulare, currere, comedere, jejunare, flere, ridere, et caetera hujuscemodi, nisi Deus juverit, non poterimus? Atticus. Juxta meum sensum non posse perspicuum est. Critobulus. In quo igitur liberum habemus arbitrium, et Dei in nos gratia custoditur, si ne hoc quidem absque Deo possumus facere? Atticus. Non sic donata est liberi arbitrii gratia, ut Dei per singula tollatur adminiculum. Critobulus. Non tollitur Dei adjutorium, cum creaturae ex semel dati liberi arbitrii gratia conserventur. Si enim absque Deo, et nisi per singula ille me juverit, nihil possum agere: nec pro bonis me juste operibus coronabit, nec affliget pro malis; sed in utroque suum vel recipiet, vel damnabit auxilium. Atticus. Dic ergo simpliciter, cur Dei auferas gratiam? Quidquid enim tollis in partibus, necesse est ut et in genere neges. Critobulus. Non nego gratiam, cum ita me a Deo asseram conditum, ut per Dei gratiam meae datum sit voluntati, vel facere quid, vel non facere. Atticus. Dormitat ergo Deus in operibus nostris, semel data liberi arbitrii potestate: nec orandus est, ut in singulis operibus nos juvet, cum voluntatis nostrae sit et proprii arbitrii, vel facere si volumus, vel non facere si nolumus. Critobulus. Quomodo in caeteris creaturis conditionis ordo servatur: sic concessa semel liberi arbitrii potestate, nostrae voluntati omnia derelicta sunt. Atticus. Ergo, ut dixi, non debeo a Deo per singula auxilium deprecari, quod semel meo datum est judicio? Critobulus. Si in omnibus ille cooperatur, non est meum, sed ejus qui adjuvat, immo qui in me cooperatur: praesertim cum absque eo facere nihil possim. Atticus. Oro te, non legisti: Non enim volentis neque currentis, sed miserentis est Dei ? Ex quibus intelligimus nostrum quidem esse velle et currere; sed ut voluntas nostra compleatur et cursus, ad Dei misericordiam pertinere, atque ita fieri, ut et in voluntate nostra et in cursu, liberum servetur arbitrium, et in consummatione voluntatis et cursus, Dei cuncta potentiae relinquantur. Scilicet nunc mihi Scripturarum testimonia replicanda sunt, quomodo per singula Dei a sanctis flagitetur auxilium et in singulis operibus suis, illo adjutore et protectore uti desiderent. Lege totum Psalterium, omnes sanctorum voces, nihil erit, nisi ad Deum in cunctis operibus deprecatio. Ex quo perspicue ostenditur, te aut Dei negare gratiam, quam tollis in partibus; aut si in partibus dederis, quod nequaquam te velle manifestum est, in nostram sententiam transire, qui sic liberum homini servamus arbitrium, ut Dei per singula adjutorium non negemus. Critobulus. Captiosa ista est conclusio, et de dialecticorum arte descendens. Mihi autem nullus auferre poterit liberi arbitrii potestatem, ne, si in operibus meis Deus adjutor exstiterit, non mihi debeatur merces, sed ei qui in me operatus est. Atticus. Fruere liberi arbitrii potestate, ut contra Deum armes linguam tuam, et in eo te liberum probes, si tibi liceat blasphemare. Verum super hoc quid sentias, nulli dubium est, et praestigia confessionis tuae apertissima luce claruerunt. Nunc revertamur ad id, unde disserere coepimus. Dic mihi, si tibi videtur, hoc quod cum Dei adjutorio paulo ante dicebas, posse hominem non peccare si velit, in perpetuum dicas, an ad tempus et breve? Critobulus. Superflua interrogatio est. Si enim ad tempus et breve dixero: nihilominus referetur ad perpetuum. Quidquid enim ad breve dederis, hoc concedes et in perpetuum. Atticus. Quid dicas, non satis intelligo. Critobulus. Itane durus es, ut manifesta non sentias? Atticus. Non me pudet nescire quod nescio. Et de quo futura est disputatio, debet inter utrumque convenire quem sensum habeat. Critobulus. Ego hoc assero, qui potest uno die se abstinere a peccato, posse et altero: qui duobus, posse et tribus; qui tribus, posse et tringinta; atque hoc ordine posse et trecentis, et tribus millibus, et quamdiucumque se voluerit abstinere. Atticus. Dic ergo simpliciter posse hominem in perpetuum esse sine peccato si velit. Possumusne omne quod volumus? Critobulus. Nequaquam. Neque enim possum quidquid voluero; sed hoc solum dico, hominem sine peccato posse esse, si velit. Atticus. Quaeso ut mihi respondeas. Hominem me putas, an belluam? Critobulus. Si de te ambigo, utrum homo, an bellua sis, ipse me bellnam confitebor. Atticus. Si ergo, ut dicis, homo sum, quomodo cum velim, et satis cupiam non peccare, delinquo? Critobulus. Quia voluntas imperfecta est. Si enim vere velles, vere utique non peccares. Atticus. Ergo tu qui me arguis non vere cupere, sine peccato es, quia vere cupis? Critobulus. Quasi ego de me dicam, quem peccatorem esse confiteor, et non de paucis et raris, si qui voluerint non peccare. Atticus. Interim ex meo tuoque judicio, et ego qui interrogo, et tu qui respondes, peccatores sumus. Critobulus. Sed possumus non esse si velimus. Atticus. Dixi me velle non peccare, te quoque hoc sentire non dubium est. Quomodo ergo quod uterque volumus, uterque non possumus? Critobulus. Quia plene non volumus. Atticus. Da ergo qui majorum nostrorum plene voluerint et potuerint. Critobulus. Hoc quidem non facile est ostendere. Neque enim quando dico hominem posse esse sine peccato si velit, aliquos fuisse contendo; sed simpliciter posse esse si velit. Aliud namque est esse posse, quod Graece dicitur δύναμις; aliud est esse, quod ipsi appellant ἐνέργεια. Possum esse medicus; sed interim non sum. Possum esse faber; sed necdum didici. Quidquid igitur possum: licet necdum sim, tamen ero si voluero. Atticus. Aliud sunt artes, aliud id quod per artes est. Medicina et fabrica, et artes caeterae inveniuntur in plurimis: sine peccato autem esse perpetuo, divinae solius est potestatis. Itaque aut da exemplum qui absque peccato fuerint in perpetuum: aut si dare non potes, confitere imbecillitatem tuam, et noli ponere in coelum os tuum, ut per esse, et esse posse,stultorum illudas auribus. Quis enim tibi concedet, posse hominem facere quod nullus umquam hominum potuerit? Ne tu dialecticis imbutus quidem es? Si enim potest homo, non posse tollitur. Si autem non potest, posse subvertitur. Aut concede mihi aliquem potuisse, quod fieri posse contendis: aut si nullus hoc potuit, invitus teneberis, nullum posse, quod possibile jactitas. Inter Diodorum et Chrysippum valentissimos dialecticos ista contentio est. Diodorus id solum posse fieri dicit, quod aut sit verum, aut verum futurum sit. Et quidquid futurum sit, id fieri necesse esse. Quidquid autem non sit futurum, id fieri non posse. Chrysippus vero et quae non sunt futura, posse fieri dicit: ut frangi hoc margaritum, etiam si id numquam futurum sit. Qui ergo aiunt hominem posse esse absque peccato si velit, non poterunt hoc verum probare, nisi futurum docuerint. Cum autem futura incerta sint omnia, et maxime ea quae numquam facta sunt,  perspicuum est eos id futurum dicere, quod non sit futurum; Ecclesiaste hanc confirmante sententiam: Omne quod futurum est, jam factum est in priori saeculo. Santus Hieronymus, Dialogus Adversus Pelagianos, Liber I Source: Migne PL 23.499d-503a

Atticus: Therefore it is settled among us that in our good works, besides our own will, we depend on the help of God, and on the devil in evil acts? Critobulus: It is settled and concerning this there is no argument. Atticus: Therefore they think erroneously who would not have the help of God in every single action that we perform, and to that which the Psalmist sings, 'Unless the Lord build the house, they labor in vain who build it. Unless the Lord guard the city, vainly he watches who guards it.' 1 and other things like this, they give perverse interpretations, truly worthy of laughter, as they strive to twist it to mean something else. Critobulus: Why is it needed for me to speak against others when you have my answer on this? Atticus: What is your answer? Do they think well or poorly? Critobulus: And what necessity forces me that I should make known my thought against them? Atticus: The order of the argument and care for truth. Do you not know that whatever we say either is or it not, and that it should be classified among the good or the evil? Therefore, concerning what I ask, whether they spoke well or poorly, you must speak despite your unwillingness. Critobulus: If in every single action that we do God must be a helper, will it not then be that, unless God gives aid, we will not be able to fashion a pen for writing, and smooth it with pumice after, and apply our hand to the making of letters, and maintain silence, and talk, and sit, and stand, and walk, and run, and eat, and fast, and cry, and laugh, and do other similar things? Atticus: According to my mind clearly it would not be possible. Critobulus: In what way, then, do we have free will with the grace of God preserved in us, if we without God cannot do these things? Atticus: The grace of the free will was not given that it do away with the assistance of God in everything. Critobulus: The help of God is not taken away when creatures are preserved by the grace of the free will that has been given them once. For if without God, and unless He helps me in every action, I can do nothing, He will neither crown me rightly for good deeds done, nor will He punish for evil deeds, but in both cases He will either admit or condemn His own assistance. Atticus: Simply tell me why you rule out the grace of God. For whatever you take from the parts, you must necessarily refuse to the whole. Critobulus: I do not deny grace when I assert that I was fashioned by God in such a way that through the grace of God the will was given to me either to act or not to act. Atticus: Therefore God rests as far as our works are concerned once the power of free will has been given, nor should there be prayer that He help us in each of our acts when it is of our own will to do what we wish to do or not to do what we do not wish to do. Critobulus: Just as in other creatures the order of creation is preserved, so once the power of free will his been given everything is left to our will. Atticus: Therefore, as I said, do I not need to ask God for help in every act, that which has been given once and for all in my own judgement? Critobulus: If He is a cooperator in everything, the act is not mine but it is of He who helps, or rather to Him who cooperates, especially since without Him I can do nothing. Atticus: I ask you, have you not read, 'For it is not of him who wills nor of him who runs, but of the mercy of God?' 2 From which we understand that ours it is to will and to run, but the accomplishment of our willing and running belongs to the mercy of God, and so it comes about that in our own willing and our running the free will is preserved, and the accomplishment of our willing and our running require the power of God. Now it seems clear to me that at this point the testimony of Scripture should be quoted to show how those who were holy begged God to help them in every act, and they desired Him as helper and protector in every work of theirs. Read the whole Psalter, the words of all those who were holy, nothing will be found but prayer to God in every deed. From which it is easily seen that you either deny the grace of God, which you take away from the parts, or, if you grant it to the parts, which it is obvious you do not wish to do, you cross over into our judgement, who preserve the free will of man while not denying the help of God in every deed. Critobulus: This conclusion is captious and is drawn from the art of the dialecticians. To me, however, no one will be able to deny the power of the free will, lest, if God exists as my helper in my works, the reward not be imputed to me, but to Him who worked in me. Atticus: Delight in the power of free will so that you may arm your tongue against God and so prove yourself free since you are allowed to blaspheme. Of what you think about this there is no doubt and the deceits of your confession shine with brightest light. But now let us return to the place where we began our discussion. Tell me, if it pleases you, when you said a little while ago that it was possible for man with the help of God not to sin if he wished it, did you mean forever, or temporarily and briefly? Critobulus: A superfluous question. For if I were to say temporarily and briefly it will still be taken as forever, for whatever you grant to a brief span of time you also admit forever. Atticus: I do not fully understand what you are saying. Critobulus: Are you so dull that you do not grasp what is obvious? Atticus: I am not ashamed to not know what I do not know. And for the future of this discussion we must both agree on the definition of what we have before us. Critobulus: I assert that he who can abstain from sinning for one day can also do so for another day, and he who can do it for two days can also do it for three days, and he who can do it for three days can also do it for thirty days, and with this understanding he can also abstain from sinning for three hundred days, and as for as long a time as he wants. Atticus: So simply say that man can be without sin forever if he wants to. Are we not able to do everything that we want to? Critobulus: Not at all. For I cannot do everything that I wish. But all I am saying is that man can be without sin if he wants to. Atticus: I ask you to answer me this: do you think me a man or a beast? Critobulus: If I am in doubt as to whether you are a man or a beast I will confess myself a beast. Atticus: If then, as you say, I am a man, how is it that when I wish and truly desire not to sin I go astray? Critobulus: Because your will is imperfect. For if you truly wanted to, certainly you would not sin. Atticus: Therefore you who claim that I do not truly desire to be without sin, are without sin because you truly desire it? Critobulus: As if I were speaking of myself, I who confess that I am a sinner, and not of those few and rare individuals who if they wish do not sin. Atticus: Meanwhile in mine and your judgement, I, who am asking the question, and you, who answer, are sinners? Critobulus: But we are able not to be if we wish. Atticus: I said that I did not wish to sin, and you also doubtless think this. How then is it that what we both want we are not able to do? Critobulus: Because we do not wholly want it. Atticus: Then give me some of those great ones among us who fully wish it and do it. Critobulus: This is certainly not easy to show. For when I say that man can be without sin if he wishes I am not contending that there were some individuals like this, but simply that a man is able to be it if he wants it. For what in Greek is called δύναμις, that is, 'possibility' is one thing and that which they name ἐνέργεια, that is, 'actuality' is another. I can be a physician but in the meantime I am not. I can be a craftsman but I have not yet learnt how. Therefore whatever I can be, although I am not yet that thing, nevertheless, I shall be if I want to. Atticus: The arts are one thing, that which comes into being as the result of the art is something else. Medical skill, craftsmanship, and the other arts, are found in many individuals, but to be without sin forever is of the Divine power alone. Therefore either give example of those who were without sin forever, or if you cannot do so confess your inability and stop placing your mouth in heaven 3and with talk of being and being possible deceiving the ears of the foolish. For who will grant you that a man is able to do what no man has ever been able to do? Have you not any education in dialectics at all? If a man can do something, impossibilty is ruled out. But if a thing is not possible for man, possibility is denied. Either grant me that someone was able to do what you contend is possible, or, if no person was able to do it, you will have to admit, unwillingly, that no man can do what you boast is possible. Between the most capable dialecticians Diodorus and Chrysippus this is the argument. Diodorus says that only that is possible which either is true or will be true. And whatever will be in the future is necessarily possible. But whatever will not be in the future is impossible. Chrysippus, however, says that those things are also possible that will not be, as it is possible for a particular pearl to break, even if it never happens. Therefore they who say that man can be without sin if wishes it are not be able to prove this to be true, unless they teach that it will take place in the future. But since all future things are uncertain, especially those things that never have been done, it is obvious that what they are speaking of in the future will not take happen. Ecclesiastes confirms this view: 'Everything that will be has been done in the ages that were before.' 4 Saint Jerome, Dialogue Against the Pelagians, Book 1 1 Ps 126.1 2 Rom 9.16 3 Ps 72.9 4 Eccles 1.9,10

Virtue and Knowledge

Εἶδον σὺν τὸν περισπασμόν, ὃν ἔδωκεν ὁ θεὸς τοῖς υἱοῖς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου τοῦ περισπᾶσθαι ἐν αὐτῷ. Σὺν τὰ πάντα ἐποίησεν καλὰ ἐν καιρῷ αὐτοῦ καί γε σὺν τὸν αἰῶνα ἔδωκεν ἐν καρδίᾳ αὐτῶν, ὅπως μὴ εὕρῃ ὁ ἄνθρωπος τὸ ποίημα, ὃ ἐποίησεν ὁ θεός, ἀπ' ἀρχῆς καὶ μέχρι τέλους. Ἔγνων ὅτι οὐκ ἔστιν ἀγαθὸν ἐν αὐτοῖς εἰ μὴ τοῦ εὐφρανθῆναι καὶ τοῦ ποιεῖν ἀγαθὸν ἐν ζωῇ αὐτοῦ· καί γε πᾶς ὁ ἄνθρωπος, ὃς φάγεται καὶ πίεται καὶ ἴδῃ ἀγαθὸν ἐν παντὶ μόχθῳ αὐτοῦ, δόμα θεοῦ ἐστιν.   Εἶδον, φησί, τὰ αἰσθητὰ πράγματα περισπῶντα, τὴν διάνοιαν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου, ἅπερ ἔδωκεν ὁ θεὸς πρὸ τῆς καθάρσεως τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ἵν᾿ἐν αὐτοῖς περισπῶνται. Πρόσκαιρον δὲ αὐτῶν τὴν καλλονὴν λέγει καὶ οὐκ ἀΐδιον· μετὰ γὰρ τὴν κάθαρσιν οὐκ ἔτι ὡς περισπῶντα τὸν νοῦν αὐτοῦ μόνον ὁ καθαρὸς τὰ αἰσθητὰ πράγματα καθορᾷ, ἀλλ᾿ὡς ἐγκείμενα αὐτῷ πρὸς τὴν πνευματικὴν θεωρίαν. Ἀλλως γὰρ τυποῦται ὁ νοῦς τοῖς αἰσθητοῖς διὰ τῶν αἰσθήσεων ἐπιβάλλων αἰσθητῶς, καὶ ἄλλως διατίθεται τοὺς λόγους τοὺς ἐναποκειμένους τοῖς αἰσθητοῖς θεωρῶν· ἀλλ᾿ αὕτη μὲν ἡ γνῶσις καθαροῖς μόνον ἐπισυμβαίνει, ἡ δὲ διὰ τῶν αἰσθήσεων κατανόησις τῶν πραγμάτων καὶ καθαροῖς καὶ ἀκαθάρτοις. Διὸ καὶ περισπασμὸν πρόσκαιρον εἶπεν αὐτὴν θεοῦ δεδομένην· προνοούμενος γὰρ ὁ θεὸς τῆς ἐμπαθοῦς ψυχῆς ἔδωκεν αὐτῇ αἰσθήσεις καὶ πράγματα αἰστητά, ὅπως ἐν αὐτοῖς περισπωμένη καὶ νοηματιζομένη ἐκφεύγῃ τοὺς μέλλοντας αὐτῇ παρὰ τῶν ἀντικειμένων ἐμβάλλεσθαι λογισμούς. Ἔδωκε δὲ αὐτοῖς, φησί, καὶ τὸν αἰῶνα, τουτέστι τοὺς λόγους τοῦ αἰῶνος· αὕτη γάρ ἐστιν ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν ἣν ἐντὸς ἔχειν ἡμᾶς εἶπεν ὁ κύριος, ἥτις καλυπτομένη ὑπὸ τῶν παθῶν οὐχ εὐρίσκεται τοῖς ἀνθρώποις. Ἔγνων οὖν, φησίν, ὅτι οὐκ ἔστι τὰ πράγματα ἀγαθά ἀλλ᾿ οἱ λόγοι τῶν πραγμάτων, ἐφ᾿ οἷς καὶ εὐφραίνεσθαι πέφυκεν ἡ φύσις ἡ λογικὴ καὶ ἐργάζεσθαι τὸ ἀγαθόν· οὐδὲν τρέφει καὶ ποτίζει τὸν νοῦν ὡς ἀρετὴ καὶ γνῶσις θεοῦ. Εὐάγριος ὁ Ποντικός, Εἰς Τον Ἐκκλησιασην

I have seen the occupation that God has given to the sons of men by which they are occupied. All the things he has made are beautiful in his time and he has also set the ages in their heart, that man may not discover the work that God has performed from the beginning even until the end. I know that there is no good in them, except to rejoice and to do good in his life.  And every man who eats and drinks  and sees good in all his work, it is a gift of God. 1   I have seen, he says, sensible objects  that occupy the thoughts of men, which God gave to men before their purification in order that they might be occupied by them. He says their beauty is temporal and not eternal, for after purification the mind of the purified is no more distracted by sensible objects, but he is absorbed in spiritual contemplation. It is one thing for the mind to be stamped in a sensible way when intent on the perception of sensible things, and it is a different thing to contemplate by means of sensed things the inner meanings they contain, but this latter knowledge is attained only by the pure, while understanding by sensible objects is of both the pure and the impure. This is why he speaks of this temporal occupation as being given by God, God in his providence towards the sensing soul having given it senses and sensible objects so that occupied by these and thinking upon them, it may escape the thoughts thrown at it by adversaries. It says He has given them even the ages, that is, the meanings of the ages, because it is there that we have the kingdom of heaven within us, as the Lord has said; 2 but being obscured beneath passions it is not found by men. I have seen, he says, that it is not things that are good, but rather the meaning of them, on account of which rational nature has grown to rejoice and to do good. Nothing so feeds and waters the mind as virtue and the knowledge of God.   Evagrius Ponticus, On Ecclesiastes  1 Eccl 3.10-13 2 Lk 17.21

Seeking Causes

Et dedi cor meum ad inquirendum et considerandum in sapientia de omnibus quae fiunt sub sole. Hanc occupationem malam dedit Deus filiis hominum, ut occuparentur in ea.   Verbum Anian Aquila, Septuaginta, et Theodotio περιπασμὸν similiter transtulerunt, quod in distentionem Latinus interpres expressit, eo quod in varias sollicitudines mens hominis distenta lanietur. Symmachus vero ἀσχολίαν, id est, occupationem transtulit. Quia igitur saepius in hoc volumine nominatur, sive occupationem, sive distentionem, sive quid aliud dixerimus, ad superiorem sensum cuncta referantur. Dedit ergo Ecclesiastes primo omnium mentem suam ad sapientuam requirendam, et citra licitum se extendens, voluit causas rationesque cognoscere: quare parvuli corriperentur a daemone, cur naufragia et justos et impios pariter absorberent; utrum haec et his similia casu evenirent, an judicio Dei. Et si casu, ubi provendentia? si judicio, ubi iusitia Dei. Haec, inquit, nosse desiderans, intellexi superfluam curam et sollicitiudinem per diversa cruciantem a Deo hominibus datam, ut scire cupiant, quod scire non licitum est. Pulchre autem causa praemissa, a Deo data distentio est. Quomodo enim in Epistola ad Romanos scribitur: Propter quod tradidit eos Deus in passiones ignominae. Et iterum: Propter quod tradidit eos Deus in reprobum sensum, ut faciant quae non oportet. Ac deinde: Propterea tradidit eos Deus in desideria cordis in immunditiam. Et ad Thessalonicenses: Propterea mittet eis Deus operantionem erroris. Et prius causae ostenduntur, quare vel passionibus ignominae, vel sensui reprobo, vel cordis sui desideriis concedantur, aut quid fecerint, ut operationem erroris accipiant. Ita et in praesentiarum idcirco Deus distentionem malam dedit hominibus, ut distendantur in ea, quia prius sponte sua et propria voluntate haec vel illa fecerunt. Sanctus Hieronymous, Commentarius Ecclesiasten, Liber I

'And I gave my heart to enquiring and considering in wisdom all the things that are beneath the sun. This evil occupation God has given to the sons of men, that they be occupied by it. 1  The Hebrew word 'Anian' Aquila, the Septuagint and Theodotion translate similarly as περιπασμὸν, which is expressed in our language as pursuit, that is, when by the various cares the mind of man is stretched and torn. Symmachus has ἀσχολίαν, which is translated as occupation. And so what is often named in this book as occupation or pursuit, or some other name, all refer to the meaning given. Ecclesiastes thus first gives his mind to the seeking of wisdom and as far as he may he stretches himself, wishing to know causes and reasons, why little ones are taken by death, why both the righteous and the impious are destroyed in a shipwreck, whether there are similar matters of chance determining these things, or whether it is a matter of the judgement of God. And if it is by chance, then where is providence? And if it is by judgement, then where is the justice of God? These things, he says, desiring to know, I understand as an overwhelming care and anxiety through the different troubles God has given to man, that they long to know what it is not permitted to know. Beautiful is a cause given in advance, God gives the pursuit of it. It is written in the Letter to the Romans, 'On account of which God gave them to disgraceful passions 2 And again 'On account on which God gave them to a depraved mind, that they do what they should not 3 And then 'Thus God gave them to the uncleanliness in the desires of their heart.' 4 And to the Thessalonians it is said: 'Therefore God sent to them the working of error.' 5 And what is said before these lines I have quoted show the causes, that is, why they fall into disgraceful passions, or into depraved minds, or to the desires of their heart, or whatever they may do when they take to the doing of wrong. Thus in this giving God gives men to evil pursuits, that they pursue them, because before man out of his own accord and his own will this or that would do. Saint Jerome, Commentary on Ecclesiastes, Book 1 1 Eccl 1.13 2. Rom 1.6 3 Rom 1.28  4 Rom 1.24  5 2 Thes 2.10