Righteousness and the Virtues

Μακάριοι οἱ πεινῶντες καὶ διψῶντες τὴν δικαιοσύνην, ὅτι αὐτοὶ χορτασθήσονται.   Ἆρ' οὖν τὸ μὲν πρὸς τὴν δικαιοσύνην ὀρεκτικῶς ἔχειν μακαριστὸν, εἰ δέ τις πρὸς τὴν σωφροσύνην, ἢ τὴν σοφίαν, ἢ τὴν φρόνησιν, ἢ εἴ τι ἄλλο τῆς ἀρετῆς εἶδός ἐστιν, ὁμοίως ἔχει, τοῦτον οὐ μακαρίζει ὁ Λόγος;  Ἀλλὰ τοιοῦτόν τινα τάχα νοῦν τὸ λεγόμενον ἔχει·  Ἓν τῶν κατ' ἀρετὴν νοουμένων, ἡ δικαιοσύνη ἐστίν.  Συνήθως δὲ πολλάκις ἡ θεία Γραφὴ διὰ τῆς τοῦ μέρους μνήμης, περιλαμβάνει τὸ ὅλον·  ὡς ὅταν τὴν θείαν φύσιν δι' ὀνομάτων τινῶν ἑρμηνεύῃ.  Λέγει γὰρ, Ἐγὼ Κύριος, ὡς ἐκ προσώπου τοῦ Θεοῦ ἡ προφητεία·  τοῦτό μοι ὄνομα αἰώνιον·  καὶ μνημόσυνον γενεῶν γενεαῖς.  Καὶ πάλιν ἑτέρωθί φησιν·  Ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ ὤν.  Καὶ ἐν ἑτέρῳ·  ὅτι Ἐλεήμων εἰμί.  Καὶ μυρίοις ἄλλοις ὀνόμασι τοῖς τὸ ὑψηλόν τε καὶ θεοπρεπὲς διασημαίνουσιν, οἶδεν ὀνομάζειν αὐτὸν ἡ ἁγία Γραφὴ, ὥστε διὰ τούτων μαθεῖν ἀκριβῶς, ὅτι ὅταν ἕν τι εἴπῃ, πᾶς ὁ τῶν ὀνομά των κατάλογος κατὰ τὸ σιωπώμενον τῷ ἑνὶ συνεκφωνεῖται.  Οὐ γὰρ ἐνδέχεται, ἐὰν Κύριος λέγηται, μὴ καὶ τὰ ἄλλα εἶναι·  ἀλλὰ πάντα δι' ἑνὸς ὀνόματος ὀνο μάζεται.  Διὰ τούτων οὖν μεμαθήκαμεν, ὅτι διὰ μέρους τινὸς πολλὰ περιλαμβάνειν οἶδεν ὁ θεόπνευστος Λόγος.  Οὐκοῦν καὶ ἐνταῦθα τὴν δικαιοσύνην τοῖς μακαριστῶς πεινῶσι προκεῖσθαι ὁ Λόγος εἰπὼν, πᾶν εἶδος ἀρετῆς, διὰ ταύτης ἀποσημαίνει, ὡς ἐπίσης μακαριστὸν εἶναι τὸν καὶ φρόνησιν, καὶ ἀνδρείαν, καὶ σωφροσύνην πεινῶντα, καὶ εἴ τι ἕτερον ἐν τῷ αὐτῷ τῆς ἀρετῆς λόγῳ καταλαμβάνεται.  Οὐδὲ γάρ ἐστι δυνατὸν ἕν τι τῆς ἀρετῆς εἶδος τῶν λοιπῶν διεζευγμένον, αὐτὸ καθ' ἑαυτὸ τελείαν τὴν ἀρετὴν εἶναι.  Ὧ γὰρ ἂν μὴ συνθεωρῆταί τι τῶν κατὰ τὸ ἀγαθὸν νοουμένων, ἀνάγκη πᾶσα τὸ ἀντιδιαστελλόμενον ἐπ' αὐτοῦ χώραν ἔχειν·  ἀντιδιέστηκε δὲ τῇ σωφροσύνῃ μὲν τὸ ἀκόλαστον·  τῇ φρονήσει δὲ ἡ ἀφροσύνη, καὶ ἑκάστῳ τῶν πρὸς τὸ κρεῖττον ὑπειλημμένων ἐστί τι πάντως τὸ ἐκ τοῦ ἐναντίου νοούμενον.  Εἰ οὖν μὴ πάντα τῇ δικαιοσύνῃ συνθεωροῖτο, ἀμήχανον ἂν εἴη τὸ λειπόμενον ἀγαθὸν εἶναι.  Οὐκ ἂν γάρ τις εἴποι ἄφρονα δικαιοσύνην, ἢ θρασεῖαν, ἢ ἀκόλαστον, ἢ ἄλλο τι τῶν ἐν κακίᾳ θεωρουμένων.  Εἰ δὲ παντὸς τοῦ χείρονος ἀμιγὴς ὁ τῆς δικαιοσύνης λόγος ἐστὶν, ἅπαν ἐν ἑαυτῷ πάντως τὸ ἀγαθὸν περιείληφεν·  ἀγαθὸν δὲ πᾶν τὸ κατ' ἀρετὴν θεωρούμενον.  Οὐκοῦν πᾶσα ἀρετὴ τῷ ὀνόματι τῆς δικαιοσύνης ἐνταῦθα διασημαίνεται, ἧς τοὺς πεινῶντάς τε καὶ διψῶντας μακαρίζει ὁ Λόγος, τὴν πλησμονὴν αὐτοῖς τῶν ἐπιθυμουμένων ἐπαγγελλόμενος.  Ἅγιος Γρηγόριος Νύσσης, Εἰς Τους Μακαρισμους, Λογος Δ'

'Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness because they shall be filled.' 1  So then he who seeks righteousness is  blessed. But if someone in similar fashion seeks temperance, or continence, or sobriety, or wisdom, or prudence, or any other type of virtue, does the Word not judge him blessed? But perhaps it has this meaning: that they all should be understood by the one virtue of  righteousness. It is often the custom of Divine Scripture that by mentioning a part the whole is to be understood, as when the Divine nature through many names is designated. The Prophet says, as in the person of God, ' I am the Lord, this is my name forever and a memorial from generation to generation,' 2 and again in another place: ' I am what I am' 3 and in another place, 'I am merciful.' 4 and many other names of high and divine significance Sacred Scripture uses to name God, and so by this we may learn for certain that when one name is said all the names together by one are silently expressed. For it is not possible, if the Lord is spoken, that every other name is not, but rather through one name all of them are pronounced. By this then we have learned that  Divine Scripture is accustomed to speak of many things by one thing and therefore when here the Word spoke of those being blessed who seek out righteousness, by this every type of virtue is meant, so that he is equally blessed who hungers for prudence and fortitude and sobriety and continence and frugality, and by whatever other name a virtue is understood. For it cannot be that one type of virtue is separated from the rest and by itself alone is perfect. For not having what is required for goodness it is necessary that a man would have its contrary in its place, incontinence as opposed to continence, luxury for frugality, recklessness for prudence, and so on with all those things which are understood as better and from which its contrary can be grasped. If therefore something is not understood with righteousness, it cannot be something which the  lack of would be bad. For something like foolishness, boastfulness or incontinence, or something of that kind, which is understood to be a vice, would not be with righteousness. And if the meaning of righteousness is understood as an unmixing with whatever is worse, in itself including everything which is good, then it means it is the good of having every virtue. Therefore every virtue is signified by the name of righteousness when the Word judges blessed those who hunger and thirst and he promises the satisfaction of those who long for it. Saint Gregory of Nyssa, On The Beatitudes, Chapter 4 1 Mt 5.6 2 Ex 3.15  3 Ex 3.14 4 Ex 22.27