Moon and Church

Luna vero quam congruenter significet Ecclesiam, memini me promisisse in hoc psalmo consideraturum. Duae sunt de luna opiniones probabiles: harum autem quae vera sit, aut non omnino, aut difficillime arbitror posse hominem scire. Cum enim quaeritur unde lumen habeat, alii dicunt suum habere, sed globum eius dimidium lucere, dimidium autem obscurum esse; dum autem movetur in circulo suo, eamdem partem qua lucet, paulatim ad terras converti, ut videri a nobis possit, et ideo prius quasi corniculatam apparere. Nam et si facias pilam ex dimidia parte candidam, et ex dimidia obscuram; si eam partem quae obscura est ante oculos habeas, nihil candoris vides, et cum coeperis illam candidam partem ad oculos convertere, si paulatim facias, primo cornua candoris videbis, deinde paulatim crescit, donec tota pars candens opponatur oculis, et nihil obscurae alterius partis videatur: quod si perseveres adhuc paulatim convertere, incipit obscuritas apparere, et candor minui, donec iterum ad cornua redeat, et postremo totus ab oculis avertatur, ac rursus obscura illa pars sola possit videri: quod fieri dicunt, cum lumen lunae videtur crescere usque ad quintam decimam lunam, et rursus usque ad tricesimam minui, et redire ad cornua, donec penitus nihil in ea lucis appareat. Secundum hanc opinionem luna in allegoria significat Ecclesiam, quod ex parte spiritali lucet Ecclesia, ex parte autem carnali obscura est: et aliquando spiritalis pars in bonis operibus apparet hominibus; aliquando autem in conscientia latet, ac Deo tantummodo nota est, cum solo corpore apparet hominibus; sicut contingit, cum oramus in corde, et quasi nihil agere videmur, dum non ad terram, sed sursum corda habere iubemur ad Dominum. Alii autem dicunt non habere lunam lumen proprium, sed a sole illustrari; sed quando cum illo est, eam partem ad nos habere qua non illustratur, et ideo nihil in ea lucis videri; cum autem incipit ab illo recedere, illustrari ab ea etiam parte quam habet ad terram, et necessario incipere a cornibus, donec fiat quinta decima contra solem; tunc enim sole occidente oritur, ut quisquis occidentem solem observaverit, cum eum coeperit non videre, conversus ad Orientem, lunam surgere videat; atque inde ex alia parte cum ei coeperit propinquare, illam partem ad nos convertere, qua non illustratur, donec ad cornua redeat atque inde omnino non appareat; quia tunc pars illa quae illustratur, sursum est ad coelum, ad terram autem illa quam radiare sol non potest. Ergo et secundum hanc opinionem, luna intellegitur Ecclesia, quod suum lumen non habeat, sed ab unigenito Dei Filio, qui multis locis in sanctis Scripturis allegorice sol appellatus est, illustratur. Quem nescientes et cernere non valentes haeretici quidam, ad istum solem corporeum et visibilem, quod commune lumen est carnis hominum atque muscarum, sensus simplicium conantur avertere, et nonnullorum avertunt, qui quamdiu non possunt interiorem lucem veritatis mente contueri, simplici fide catholica contenti esse nolunt, quae una parvulis salus est, et quo uno lacte ad firmitatem solidioris cibi certo robore pervenitur. Quaelibet ergo duarum istarum opinionum vera sit, congruenter accipitur allegorice luna, Ecclesia. Aut si in istis obscuritatibus, magis negotiosis quam fructuosis exercere animum aut non libet, aut non vacat, aut animus ipse non valet, satis est lunam popularibus oculis intueri, et non quaerere obscuras causas, sed cum omnibus et incrementa eius et complementa et detrimenta sentire. Quae si propterea deficit ut renovetur, etiam ipsi imperitae multitudini demonstrat Ecclesiae figuram, in qua creditur resurrectio mortuorum. Sanctus Augustinus Hipponensis, Enarratio in Psalmum X

In how fitting a manner the moon signifies the Church I remember that I promised I was going to consider in this Psalm. There are two probable opinions concerning the moon, but of which of these is the true I think it either impossible or very difficult for a man to know. For when we ask whence she has light, some say that it is her own, but that of her globe half is bright, and half dark, and while she revolves on her circuit, that part which shines gradually turns toward the earth so that it can be seen by us, and therefore initially it appears horned. For if you make half a part of a sphere bright and a half dark, and if you have the part which is dark before the eyes, you will see nothing of the bright part, and when you begin to turn the bright part to the eyes, if you do so gradually, first you will see the bright horns, which will grow little by little until the whole bright part is before the eyes and nothing of the dark part is to be seen, which if we yet persevere in turning the sphere slowly, changes by little by little, and the dark part begins to appear and the bright part becomes less, until it returns to horns again, and then it is hidden completely from sight, and again the dark part is all that can be seen. And this is what happens they say when the light of the moon appears to grow to the fifteenth of the month and then it lessens to the thirtieth day and it returns to horns, until no light at all appears in it. According to this opinion the moon in allegory signifies the Church, which in her spiritual part is bright, but in her carnal part is dark, and sometimes the spiritual part is seen in the good works of men, but sometimes it is hidden in the conscience, and to God alone it is known, since body alone appears to men, as happens when we pray in our hearts and it appears that we do nothing while not to earth but to the Lord we are commanded to lift up our hearts. Others say that the moon does not have her own light but is illuminated by the sun, and when she is with the sun that part is turned to us which is not illuminated and we see no light in her, and when from the sun she begins to withdraw the part that is illuminated comes before the earth, and necessarily this begins with the horns, until the fifteenth day when she is opposite the sun, for then with the sun setting she rises, as anyone may see at sunset, and when the sun begins to disappear, turned to the east, one may see the moon rise, and from then she begins to come near the sun, turning to us that part which is not illuminated, and she returns gradually to horns and then is completely obscured, because then the part which is illuminated is turned outward to the heavens and that which is toward the earth the sun cannot illuminate. According to this other opinion, then, the moon is understood to be the Church, because she has no light of her own but is illuminated by the only begotten Son of God, who in many places of Sacred Scripture is allegorically named the Sun. Whom, being ignorant of and incapable of discerning, certain heretics try to turn the minds of the simple to this corporeal and visible sun, which is the common light of the flesh of men and flies, and some they do turn to it, who while they cannot perceive with the mind the inner light of truth, will not be content with the simple Catholic faith, which is the only safety to little ones, and by which milk alone they can come to certain strength in the firmness of more solid food. Whichever, then, of these two opinions is true, the moon in allegory is suitably understood as the Church. Or, if in these obscurities, troublesome rather than edifying, there be either no pleasure, or no leisure to exercise the mind, or if the mind itself is not capable, it is enough to look on the moon with ordinary eyes, and not to seek out obscure causes, but with all to observe her waxings and and wanings and fullness. For she who wanes that she may be renewed, even to the untutored multitude displays the image of the Church, in which the resurrection of the dead is believed. Saint Augustine of Hippo, Expositions on the Psalms, from Psalm 10

Multiple Creations

Ὁ μὲν Ἀδὰμ πέπλασται, ἡ δὲ Εὖα ᾠκοδομήθη, ἴνα δειχθῇ Θεὸς Λόγος, ἐκ Μαρίας μὲν τὸ σῶμα τὸ ἄσπιλον ἀναπλάσας ἑαυτῷ, ἐκ δὲ τῆς νυγείσης ἐπὶ τοῦ σταυροῦ πλευρᾶς τὴν νύμφην ἑαυτοῦ τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν οἰκοδομῶν. Ἅγιος Νειλος, Βιβλιον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολὴ ΣΞΗ', Κυριλλῳ Προτευοντι

Adam was created, but Eve fashioned from him, that God the Word show that He created anew for Himself a spotless body from Mary, and that from the open side on the cross His bride that is the Church is fashioned. Saint Nilus of Sinai, Book 1, Letter 268, To the Primate Cyrllius

A Wife's Vision

Sedente autem eo pro tribunali, misit ad eum uxor ejus dicens: Nihil sit tibi, et justo illi. Multa enim passa sum hodie per visum propter eum.  Et Jesus quidem per invidiam traditus erat, et ita per invidiam manifestam, ut etiam Pilatus eam non ignoraret. Volunt autem evangelistae non praeterire rem divinae providentiae laudem Dei continentem, qui voluit per visum convertere Pilati uxorem, ut, quantum ad se, vetaret virum suum ut ne audeat contra Jesum proferre sententiam. Et visum quidem non exposuit Mattheus, tantum autem dixit quia multa passa erat per visum propter Jesum. Et ideo per visum passa est ne amplius pateretur: ut beatam fuisse dicamus Pilati uxorem, quae per visum passa est multa propter Jesum, et recepit per visum quod erat passura. Ex quo audebit quis dicere quoniam melius est recipere aliquem mala in visu quam recipere in vita. Quis enim non eligat per visum mala sua recipere in vita sua, nisi forte talia mereatur ut expediat ei acriora recipere in vita sua potius quam recipere leviora in visu? Consolatur enim et requiescit in sinibus Abrahae qui recepit mala in vita sua, et non haec mala quae recepit in visu suo; secundum quod et consolationem habebit. Utrum autem et initium habet conversionis ad Deum ex eo quod multa propter Jesum tuerat passa per visum, Deus scit: tamen continentur etiam hoc in Scripturis quibusdam non publicis. Et vide quia justum appelavit Jesum uxor Pilati, ne forte mysterium sit haec uxor Pilati Ecclesiae ex gentibus, quae aliquando quidem regebatur a Pilato, nunc autem jam non est sub eo propter fidem suam in Christo. Origenes, In Matthaeum, Tomus XVII,

Sitting on the tribunal his wife sent to him, saying, 'Do nothing to this righteous man. For much I have suffered today through a vision of him.' 1 And certainly Jesus was handed over on account of envy and through such manifest envy that even Pilate was not ignorant of it. The Gospel writers did not wish to pass over anything of the providence of God, who wished to convert the wife of Pilate through a vision, that through her, insofar as she was able, the husband be influenced not to dare give sentence against Jesus. Matthew does not expound the vision, only saying that she suffered much through her vision of Jesus. And therefore having suffered through a vision, and not anything more, as one blessed we shall call the wife of Pilate, she who through a vision suffered much on account of Christ, and received through a vision what she suffered. For one may say that it is better to receive something evil in a vision than in life. For who would not choose to receive evils in life through a dream, unless perhaps such things were merited and it benefit to receive them more bitterly in life rather than to receive them lightly in a vision? For he was consoled and rested in the lap of Abraham who received evils in his life and did not receive evil in a vision, according to which there shall be consolation. 2 Whether she had an immediate conversation to God on account of the many things of Jesus she suffered through her vision, God only knows; contained in the Scriptures are things which are not made public. And yet see that the wife of Pilate named Jesus righteous, lest perhaps it be a mystery why this wife of Pilate is of the church of the Gentiles, which for a time was ruled by Pilate, but already it is not beneath him on account of her faith in Christ. Origen, Commentary On Matthew, Book 17 1 Mt 27.19 2 Lk 16.22-23

A Wife's Dream

Καθημένου δὲ αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ βὴματος, ἔπεμψε πρὸς αὐτόν λέγουσα· Μηδέν σοι καὶ τῷ δικαίῳ τούτῳ· πολλὰ γὰρ ἔπαθον σήμερον κατ' ὄναρ δι' αὐτον. Ὅρα οἷον γίνεται πάλιν, ἰκανον πάνατς αὐτοὺς ἀνακαλέσασθαι. Μετὰ γὰρ τῆς ἀπὸ τῶν πραγμάτων ἀποδείξεως, καὶ τὸ ὄναρ οὐ μικρὸν ἧν. Καὶ τίνος ἔνεκεν οὐκ αὐτὸς ὁρᾷ; Ἥ ὅτι ἐκεινη ἀξία ἥν μᾶλλον· ἢ ὅτι αὐτὸς εἰ εἶδεν, οὐκ ἂν ἐπιστεύθη ὁμοίως, ἢ οὐδ' ἂν ἐξεῖπε. Διὰ τοῦτο οἰκονομεῖται τὴν γυναῖκα ἰδεῖν, ὥστε κατάδηλον γενέσθαι πᾶσι. Καὶ οὐκ ἁπλῶς ὁρᾷ, ἀλλὰ καὶ πάσχει πολλὰ, ἵνα  καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς συμπαθείας τῆς πρὸς τὴν γυναῖκα ὀκνηρότερος γένηται ὁ ἀνὴρ περὶ τὸν φόνον. Καὶ ὁ καιρὸς δὲ οὐ μικρὸν συνετέλει· κατὰ γὰρ αὐτὴν τὴν νύκτα εἴδεν. Ἅγιος Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος, Ὁμῖλία ΠϚ' ,Ὑπόμνημα Εἰς την προς Ἁγιον Ματθαίον

And sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent to him, saying, have nothing to do with this righteous man, for I have suffered many things today because of a dream of Him. 1 See what a thing takes place again, enough to recall them all. For with the proof of things done, even the dream was no small thing. And why does he not see it? Either because she was more worthy, or because if he had seen it, it would not have been equally believed, or he would not  have told it. Therefore it was arranged that his wife see it, so that it might be revealed to all. And she does not only see but she also suffers much, so that on account of care for his wife, the man may be made more reluctant to kill. And the time too contributed not a little, for on the very night she saw. Saint John Chyrsostom, Eighty Sixth Homily On Matthew 1 Mt 27.19

Passion of God and Christ

Θεοῦ πάθος οὐ λέγεται· Χριστοῦ γὰρ τὸ πάθος γέγονε· σαρκωθέντος δηλονότι Θεοῦ, καὶ τῇ προσλήψει τῆς σαρκὸς τὸ πάθος ὑπομείναντος. Θεότης γὰρ γυμνὴ οὐ μόνον πάσχειν οὐ δύναται, ἀλλ' οὕτε κρατεῖσθαι, οὐδὲ ὁρᾶσθαι, εἰ μὴ τῇ φύσει τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἠνώθη φιλανθρώπως. Ἅγιος Ἰσίδωρος Του Πηλουσιώτου, Βιβλιον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολὴ ΡΚΔ' Δωροθεω Κομητι

It is not said' the passion of God', for it was the passion of Christ; manifest it is that with the incarnation of God was the taking on of flesh liable to suffering. For not only is the Divinity unable to suffer, but it cannot be  grasped or envisioned unless it had been bound to human nature out of kindness and mercy. Saint Isidore of Pelusium, Book 1, Letter 124, To Count Dorotheus

Suffering and Salvation

Τοιοῦτον εἶναί μοι φαίνεται καὶ τό· Ὁ θεός, ὁ θεός μου, πρόσχες μοι, ἵνα τί ἐγκατέλιπές με; οὐ γὰρ αὐτὸς ἐγκαταλέλειπται, ἢ ὑπὸ τοῦ πατρός, ἢ ὑπὸ τῆς ἑαυτοῦ θεότητος, ὃ δοκεῖ τισίν, ὡς ἂν φοβουμένης τὸ πάθος, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο συστελλομένης ἀπὸ τοῦ πάσχοντος. Τίς γὰρ ἢ γεννηθῆναι κάτω τὴν ἀρχήν, ἢ ἐπὶ τὸν σταυρὸν ἀνελθεῖν ἠνάγκασεν; ἐν ἑαυτῷ δέ, ὅπερ εἶπον, τυποῖ τὸ ἡμέτερον. Ἡμεῖς γὰρ ἦμεν οἱ ἐγκαταλελειμμένοι καὶ παρεωραμένοι πρότερον, εἶτα νῦν προσειλημμένοι καὶ σεσωσμένοι τοῖς τοῦ ἀπαθοῦς πάθεσιν· ὥσπερ καὶ τὴν ἀφροσύνην ἡμῶν καὶ τὸ πλημμελὲς οἰκειούμενος τὰ ἑξῆς διὰ τοῦ ψαλμοῦ φησίν· ἐπειδὴ προδήλως εἰς Χριστὸν ὁ εἰκοστὸς πρῶτος ψαλμὸς ἀναφέρεται. Τῆς δὲ αὐτῆς ἔχεται θεωρίας καὶ τὸ μαθεῖν αὐτὸν τὴν ὑπακοὴν ἐξ ὧν ἔπαθεν, ἥ τε κραυγή, καὶ τὰ δάκρυα, καὶ τὸ ἱκετεῦσαι, καὶ τὸ εἰσακουσθῆναι, καὶ τὸ εὐλαβές. ἃ δραματουργεῖται καὶ πλέκεται θαυμασίως ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν. Ὡς μὲν γὰρ λόγος, οὔτε ὑπήκοος ἦν, οὔτε ἀνήκοος. Τῶν γὰρ ὑπὸ χεῖρα ταῦτα, καὶ τῶν δευτέρων, τὸ μὲν τῶν εὐγνωμονεστέρων, τὸ δὲ τῶν ἀξίων κολάσεως. Ὡς δὲ δούλου μορφή, συγκαταβαίνει τοῖς ὁμοδούλοις καὶ δούλοις, καὶ μορφοῦται τὸ ἀλλότριον, ὅλον ἐν ἑαυτῷ ἐμὲ φέρων μετὰ τῶν ἐμῶν, ἵνα ἐν ἑαυτῷ δαπανήσῃ τὸ χεῖρον, ὡς κηρὸν πῦρ, ἢ ὡς ἀτμίδα γῆς ἥλιος, κἀγὼ μεταλάβω τῶν ἐκείνου διὰ τὴν σύγκρασιν. Διὰ τοῦτο ἔργῳ τιμᾷ τὴν ὑπακοήν, καὶ πειρᾶται ταύτης ἐκ τοῦ παθεῖν. Οὐ γὰρ ἱκανὸν ἡ διάθεσις, ὥσπερ οὐδὲ ἡμῖν, εἰ μὴ καὶ διὰ τῶν πραγμάτων χωρήσαιμεν. Ἔργον γὰρ ἀπόδειξις διαθέσεως. Οὐ χεῖρον δὲ ἴσως κἀκεῖνο ὑπολαβεῖν, ὅτι δοκιμάζει τὴν ἡμετέραν ὑπακοήν, καὶ πάντα μετρεῖ τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ πάθεσι τέχνῃ φιλανθρωπίας, ὥστε ἔχειν εἰδέναι τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ τὰ ἡμέτερα, καὶ πόσον μὲν ἀπαιτούμεθα, πόσον δὲ συγχωρούμεθα, λογιζομένης μετὰ τοῦ πάσχειν καὶ τῆς ἀσθενείας. Εἰ γὰρ τὸ φῶς ἐδιώχθη διὰ τὸ πρόβλημα, φαῖνον ἐν τῇ σκοτίᾳ, τῷ βίῳ τούτῳ, ὑπὸ τῆς ἄλλης σκοτίας, τοῦ πονηροῦ λέγω καὶ τοῦ πειραστοῦ, τὸ σκότος πόσον, ὡς ἀσθενέστερον; καὶ τί θαυμαστόν, Εἰ ἐκείνου διαφυγόντος παντάπασιν ἡμεῖς ποσῶς καὶ καταληφθείημεν; μεῖζον γὰρ ἐκείνῳ τὸ διωχθῆναι, ἤπερ ἡμῖν τὸ καταληφθῆναι. Ἅγιος Γρηγόριος ὁ Ναζιανζηνός, Λόγος Λ'

Of the same kind, it appears to me, is: 'My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?' 1 For it was not that He was forsaken either by the Father, or by His own Godhead, as it seems to some, as if fearing the Passion it thus withdrew Itself from the suffering. For who forced Him either to be born at the beginning, or to be lifted up on the Cross? But He, as I said, was representing us. For we were the forsaken and despised, but now taken up and saved by the suffering of Him who could not suffer, as even He takes possession of our folly and our transgressions, and says what follows in the Psalm, for it is evident that the twenty first Psalm refers to Christ. And the same insight holds regarding His learning obedience by what He suffered, and the cry, and the tears, and the prayers, and His being heard, and reverence. All of this He wonderfully devised like a drama for us. For as the Word He was neither obedient nor disobedient. For such things are for servants and inferiors, and the first applies to the better sort, while the other to those who deserve punishment. But in the form of a Servant He condescends to His fellow servants and servants and receives strange form, in Himself bearing all me and mine, that in Himself He may exhaust the bad, as fire devours wax, or as sun the mists of earth, and that I may partake of His nature by the blending. Thus He honours obedience by His action and proves it by His Passion. For the disposition is not enough, just as it is for us, unless proved by acts. Action is the demonstration of disposition. And perhaps it would not be a fault to propose this also, that He tests our obedience, and measures all by comparison with His own Sufferings for the love of man, so that He may know ours by His own, and how much is required of us, and how much we yield, considering our sufferings and our weakness also. For if the Light passing through a screen, shining in darkness, in this life, was persecuted by the other darkness, the Evil One, I mean, and the Tempter, how much more will the darkness be so, being weaker? And what marvel is it, that though He entirely escaped, we have been, to a certain extent, overtaken? For it is greater wonder He should have been beset, than that we should have been captured. Saint Gregory Nazianzus, from Oration 30 1 Ps 21.2

Enduring Trials

Omnes gurgites tui et fluctus tui super me transierunt. LXX: Omnes elevationes tuae et fluctus tui super me transiereunt. Quod super Jonam tumentes maris fluctus transiereunt, et detonuerit saeva tempestas, nulli dubium est. Quaerimus autem quomodo omnes elevationes, et gurgites, et fluctus Dei, super Salvatorem transietint. Tentatio est vita hominum super terram,  sive ut in Herbraice habetur, militia, quia hic militamus, ut alibi coronemur. Nullusque est hominum, qui cunctas sustinere queat tentationes, absque eo qui tentatus est in omnibus, juxta nostram similitudinem, sine peccato. Unde et ad Corinthios dicitur: Tentatio vos non apprehendat, nisi humana. Fidelis autem Deus qui non dimittet vos tentari supra id, quod potestis; sed faciet cum tentatione et exitum ut possitis sustinere.  Et quoniam omnes persecutiones, et universa quae accidunt, absque Dei non ingruunt voluntate: idcirco Dei gurgites dicuntur et fluctus, qui non oppresserunt Jesum, sed transierunt per eum, minantes tantum naufragium, non inferentes. Universae ergo persecutiones, et turbines, quibus genus vexabatur humanum, et cunctae naviculae frangebantur, super meum detonuere caput. Ego sustinui tempestates, et fregi turbines saevientes, ut caeteri securius navigarent. Sanctus Hieronimus, Commentarius In Jonam Prophetem

All your floods and waves have passed over me. The Septuagint has: All your heights and waves have passed over me. 1 That over Jonah the great waves of the sea passed and the wild storm thundered, there is no doubt. We seek how all these heights and floods and waves of God passed over the Saviour. 'Man's life is trial upon the earth,' 2 or as the Hebrew has it 'Man's life is warfare,' because here we fight that elsewhere we be crowned. And there is no one among men who is able to endure every temptation, apart from the one tested in everything, who was according to our likeness, without sin. Whence it is said to the Corinthians: 'Temptation will not come upon you, unless it is human. God is faithful and will not allow you to be tested beyond your strength, but He will give you an exit that you are able to endure.' 3 And because all persecutions and everything which happen cannot happen apart from the will of God, thus they are called the floods and waves of God, which did not crush Jesus, but passed through Him, only threatening shipwreck and not bearing Him away. Therefore every persecution and whirlwind by which the human race is troubled and which has beset small craft, over His head has thundered. He has endured the storm, and vanquished the the great wind, that others may sail more securely. 4 Saint Jerome, Commentary on Jonah 1 Jonah 2.4 2 Job 7.1 3 1 Cor 10.13 4 cf Mt 8.23-27

Peter and the Church

Petrus autem sequebatur a longe, et reliqua Mirandus est, et tamen venerandus, qui Dominum non reliquit, etiam cum timeret. Quod enim timet, naturae est: quod sequitur, devotionis; quod negat, obstreptionis; quod poenitet, fidei. Mystice, quod ad passionem eumdem Dominum a longe sequitur Petrus, significabat Ecclesiam secuturam quidem, hoc est imitaturam Domini passiones; sed longe differenter, Ecclesia enim pro se patitur, at ille pro Ecclesia. Sanctus Beda, In Matthaei Evangelium Expositio, Liber IV, Cap XXVI

And Peter followed from afar... 1 Wonderful it is, and also worthy of reverence, that he did not abandon the Lord even though he feared. For that he feared is of nature and that he followed is of devotion; that he denied, of turmoil, that he repented, of faith.  That Peter followed the Lord to the passion from afar spiritually signifies the future following of the Church, the imitation of the sufferings of the Lord, but with a separation of difference, for the Church suffers for itself, He for the Church. Saint Bede, Commentary on the Gospel of Matthew, Book 4, Chap 26 1 Mt 26.58

Weakness and Temptation

Post quae ad discipulos redit, et dormientes deprehendit, et Petrum coarguit cur secum una saltem hora non vigilet. Petrum ideo ex tribus, quia prae caeteris non se scandalizaturum fuerat gloriatus. Superioris autem metus sui indicat causas, dicens, Orate ne intretis in tentationem. Hoc erat igitur quod volebat; et ideo in oratione tradiderat. Non inducas nos in tentationem, ne quid in nos infirmitati carnis liceret. Cur autem ne in tentationem venirent orare eos admonuisset, ostendit dicens, Spiritus quidem promptus, caro autem infirma, non utique de se: ad eos enim hic sermo conversus est. Aut quomodo nunc de se spiritus promptus, si superius tristis est anima usque ad mortem? Sed vigilari praecipit et orari, ne in tentationem incidant, ne infirmitati corporis succumbat; et idcirco si possibile est ut a se transeat calix orat, quia bibendi ejus caro omnis infirma sit. Sanctus Hilarius Pictaviensis, In Evangelium Matthaei Commentarius, Cap XXII

After which He returned to the disciples and He found them sleeping, and He chided Peter, asking him why he could not watch one hour with Him. Peter it was of the three, because before the others he boasted that he would not be scandalised. His fear before this had revealed the cause, saying, 'Pray lest you enter into temptation.' This is what he wished, and therefore He entered into prayer. Do not lead us into temptation, lest our weakness of flesh permit it. He reveals why He warns them to pray, lest they come into temptation, saying, 'The spirit is ready, but the flesh is weak,' This is not about Himself but He speaks to them. Or how now is His spirit ready, if before grief afflicted His soul to death? But He commands them to be watchful and to pray, lest they fall into temptation, lest they succumb to the the weakness of the body; and so if it is possible that the cup pass from Him He prays, because in its drinking all flesh is weak. Saint Hilary of Poitiers, Commentary on the Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 22

Prayer and Trial

Συμβούλευσε μαθηταῖς τὰ τῷ καιρῷ πρέποντα εἰπών· Προσεύχεσθε ἵνα μὴ εἰσέλθητε εἰς πειρασμόν. Ἀλλ' ἵνα μὴ λόγοις αὐτοὺς ὠφελήσῃ μόνοις, παράδειξις δὲ καὶ αὐτοῦ τοῦ πράγματος εὑρεθῇ, βραχὺ προσελθὼν, πεσὼν ἐπὶ γόνυ, προσηύχετο. Καὶ τί δή ποτε τοῖς ἁγίοις σὺ συνηύχετο μαθηταῖς, ἀλλὰ καταμόνοας; Ἵνα μάθωμεν ἡμεῖς τῆς ἀρεσκούσης Θεῷ προσευχῆς τὸν τύπον. Ἔφη γὰρ ἑτέρωθι· Σὺ δὲ, ὅταν προσεύχῃ, εἴσελθε εἰς τὸ ταμιεῖον σου, ἀπόκλεισον τὴν θύραν, πρόσευξαι τῷ Πατρί σου τῷ ἐν τῷ κρυφαίῳ· καὶ ὁ Πατήρ σου ὁ βλέπων ἐν τῷ κρυφαίῳ, ἀποδώσει σοι ἐν τῷ φανερῷ. Πανταχοῦ γὰρ εὑρήσομεν καταμόνας εὑχόμενον, ἵνα καὶ σὺ μάθῃς, ὅτι σχολάζοντι νῷ καὶ γαληνιώσῃ καρδίᾳ διαλέγεσθαι χρὴ τῷ ἐπὶ πάντας Θεῷ. Καὶ οὐ δὴ που φαίη τις ἂν, εἴ γε νοῦν ἔχοι, ὅτι τῆς παρ' ἑτέρου χειρὸς ἢ ἐπικουρίας ἐν χρείᾳ καθεστηκὼς, ἐποιεῖτο τὰς λιτάς. Αὐτὸς γάρ ἐστιν ἡ πανσθενεστάτη χεὶρ καὶ δύναμις τοῦ Πατρός· ἀλλ' ἵνα ἡμεῖς διὰ τούτων μάθωμεν, μὴ νυστάζειν ἐν πειρασμοῖς, συντείνεσθαι δὲ μᾶλλον εἰς προσευχάς. Ἀμαθὲς δὲ λίαν, καὶ τὸ τῶν ἀγώνων καταθρασύνεσθαι· τῷ μετρίῳ δὲ φρονήματι χρῆναί φημι τὸ εὔτολμον καὶ τληπαθὲς ἀναπλέκειν, Ἴδωμεν δὲ καὶ προσευχῆς τὸν τρόπον. Ἅγιος Κύριλλος Ἀλεξανδρείας, Ἐξὴγησις Εἰς Τὸ Κατὰ Λούκαν Εὐάγγελιον, Κεφ. ΚΒ'

He counseled His disciples concerning things proper to the moment, saying, 'Pray that you may not enter into temptation.' 1 And not only with words did he aid them but He even made Himself an example of it, going off a little, and on his knees falling in prayer. Why does He not pray with the disciples but alone? That we may learn the type of prayer which is pleasing to God. He says in another place, 'But when you pray, enter into your chamber, and close the door, and prayer to your Father in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will give openly to you.' 2 Since everywhere we find him praying alone, so you should also learn that with unencumbered mind and tranquil heart you should speak always with the High God. Nor may someone say that he has prayed reasonably that lacks other hand or help. For He himself is the most strong hand and power of the Father. So through these things we  know that in trials we should not sleep, but rather take to prayer. It is extremely foolish to provoke struggle, but prudent to mix courage with endurance. Now indeed we may see the way of prayer. Saint Cyril of Alexandria, Commentary on Luke, Chapter 22 1 Lk 22.40 2 Mt 6.4

Watching and Temptation

Et venit ad discipulos suos, et invenit eos dormientes. Et dixit Petro: Sic non potuistis una hora vigilare mecum? Vigilate, et orate, ne intretis in tentationem.  Quandiu quidem adfuit Jesus discipulis suis, non dormierunt; pusillum autem progrediente eo ab eis, nec una hora potuerunt vigilare eo absente. Propter quod oremus ut nec modicum aliquando Jesus progrediatur a nobis, sed impicat quod promisit in nobis, dicens: Ecce ego vobiscum ero omnibus diebus, usque ad consummationem saeculi. Sic enim vigilabimus eo excutiente somnum ab anima nostra, sine quo possibile non est implere mandatum quod dicit: Nec des somnum oculis tuis, aut palpebris tuis dormitationem, ut evadas sicut damula ex retibus et sicut avis ex laqueo.  Tamen veniens ad discipulos, et inveniens dormientes, suscitat eos verbo ad audiendum, ut jam quasi audientibus dicat quod dicet sic: Non potuistis una hora vigilare mecum? Praecipit autem vigilare, ut vigilantes oremus. Vigilat autem qui facit opera bona; vigilat qui sollicite agit de fidei veritate, ne in aliquod tenebrosum dogma incurrat. Qui enim sic vigilans orat, illius exauditur oratio. Hoc enim significat dicens: Vigilate et orate; ut primum vigilemus et sic vigilantes oremus. Ut ne intretis in tentationem.     Origenes, In Matthaeum, Tomus XVII,

'And He came to his disciples and He discovered them sleeping. And He said to Peter, 'So you were not able to watch one hour with me? Watch and pray that you do not enter into temptation.' 1 While Jesus was with His disciples they did not sleep, but going a little way from them, with Him absent, they were not able to watch for one hour. On account of which let us pray that not at any time Jesus go from us even a little, but let him fulfill what He promised us, saying, ' Behold, I am with you for all days, even to the consummation of the world.' 2 So we shall watch by casting off sleep from our souls, without which it is not possible to fulfill the commandment which He gave saying, 'Do not give sleep to your eyes, or take to your rest, so that you may escape like a from the nets and like a bird from the trap' 3 However coming to the disciples, and finding them asleep, He rouses them with a word to be heard, and as if they were already listening, He speaks to them saying, 'You were not able to watch one hour with me?' He commands that we be vigilant and watching pray. He watches who does good deeds, he watches who has care for the truth of faith, lest into some teaching of darkness we rush. He who is watchful prays and his prayer is heard. Watch and pray, that first we are vigilant and and being vigilant we pray. Lest we enter into temptation. Origen, Commentary On Matthew, Book 17 1 Mt 26. 40 2Mt 28.20 3 Prov 6.4-5 4 Job 7.1 5 Prov 13.21

Spirit And Flesh

Et venit ad discipulos suos, et invenit eos dormientes; et dicit Petro: Sic non potuistis una hora vigilare mecum?  Petrum singillatim infra caeteros increpat, quia prae caeteris nunquam se scandalizaturum fuerat gloriatus, quod nunc tristitiae magnitudine somnum non potuisset extergere. Vigilate et orate, ut non intretis in tentationem.  Hoc est: Ne tentatio vos ultima superet orate, et intra suos casus teneat. Spiritus quidem promptus est, caro autem infirma.  Duas in se ostendit voluntates, humanam videlicet, quae est carnis, et divinam, quae est deitatis: formidare quippe in passione, humanae est fragilitatis; suscipere autem dispensationem passionis, divinae est voluntatis et virtutis. Aliter, ad eos hic sermo conversus est, qui se spoponderant nunquam negaturus; illorum enim spiritus promptus, sed caro erat infirma, quia nondum induerant virtutem ex alto. Sanctus Beda, In Matthaei Evangelium Expositio, Liber IV, Cap XXVI

And He came to his disciples and found them sleeping, and He said to Peter, 'So you were not able to watch an hour with me? '1 Peter alone among the others is rebuked, because he before them all had boasted that he would not be scandalised, he who now was not able to cast off sleep for the sake of great suffering. Watch and pray, that you do not enter into temptation. That is, pray that temptation not finally overcome you and among you error reign. Certainly the spirit is eager, but the flesh is weak. Two wills are shown in this, the human one, which is of the flesh, and the Divine which is of the Deity, since to fear in suffering is appropriate to human weakness but to take up the state of suffering is the choice of the Divine power. Otherwise, this is spoken to those who announced they would never desert him; for their spirit was eager but their flesh was weak, because it was not yet imbued with virtue from on high. Saint Bede, from the Commentary On The Gospel of Saint Matthew, Book 4, Chap 26 1 Mt 26.40

Corruption Of Flesh And Spirit

Corrupit, inquit, omnis caro viam suam. Carnem hic posuit pro homine terreno, in quo carnis illecebra viam ejus corruperit. Qui si intellexisset quod munus accepisset a Deo, non utique passus esset, ut caro obstaret animae virtutibus. Itaque caro causa fuit corrumpendae etiam animae, quae velut origo et locus est quidam voluptatis, ex qua velut a fonte prorumpunt concupiscentiarum malarumque passionum flumina, lateque exundant. Quibus demergitur animae quoddam excusso gubernatore remigium, cum ipsa mens velut quibusdam tempestatibus et procellis victa loco suo cedit. Pulchre autem ait, quia homo viam naturae suae corrupit. Nam via sua in paradiso erat, in illo beatitudinum tramite, in illo virtutum flore, et in illa incorruptibili gratia, quam viam terrenis inquinavit vestigiis. Sanctus Ambrosius Mediolanensis, De Noe et Arca, Caput V Source: Migne PL 14.367d-368a

'All flesh,' it says, 'corrupted its way.' 1 The flesh here stands for the earthly man, in whom the delights of the flesh have corrupted his way. If he had understood what a gift he has received from God, he would not suffer that the flesh should obstruct the virtues of the soul. Therefore the flesh is the cause of the corruption of the soul, and it is like a fount and place of pleasure, from which, like a spring bursting forth, comes a river of lust and evil passions, and broadly it pours out, by which the soul is drowned, for like a captain of oarsmen thrown overboard, so it is with reason, which, overcome by storm and tempest, falls from its place. Beautifully, then, it is said that a man corrupts the way of his nature. For his way was in paradise, in that path of beatitude, in that flourishing of virtue, and in that incorruptible grace, which way he has polluted with worldly wandering. Saint Ambrose, On Noah and the Ark, Chap 5 1 Gen. 6.12

An Errant Academic

Μὴ παῥῥησιάζου, ὦ ἄνθρωπε. Αἰσχύνεσθαι γὰρ ὀφείλεις κατὰ κράτος, καθ' ὅτι τὰς μοιχείας ἐπαινεῖς τῶν Θεῶν σου, καὶ τὰς παιδοφθορίας, καὶ προσκυνεῖς τὰ ὀλέθρια πάθη τῆς αἰσχρουργίας, καὶ οὐδὲν παντελῶς δύνῃ ὑπὲρ τὸ σῶμα διανοεῖσθαι Ἅγιος Νειλος, Βιβλιον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολὴ Ϛ' Ἡφαιστῳ Σκολαστικῳ

Do not speak freely, O man. Rather you should be ashamed of your achievements, for the gods you praise are adultery and the corruption of boys, and you venerate the ruinous passion of disgraceful deeds, and nothing more you are able to conceive than the body. Saint Nilus of Sinai, Book 1, Letter 6 To Hephaestus the Academic

Lost Sheep

Invidetur mihi. Quid faciam, Domine? Valde despicior. Ecce oves tuae circa me laniantur atque depraedantur, et supradictis latrunculis, iubente Corotico hostili mente. Longe est a caritate Dei traditor Christianorum in manus Scottorum atque Pictorum. Lupi rapaces deglutierunt gregem Domini, qui utique Hiberione cum summa diligentia optime crescebat, et filii Scottorum et filiae regulorum monachi et virgines Christi enumerare nequeo. Quam ob rem iniuria iustorum non te placeat; etiam usque ad inferos non placebit. Quis sanctorum non horreat iocundare vel conviuium fruere cum talibus? De spoliis defunctorum Christianorum repleuerunt domos suas, de rapinis vivunt. Nesciunt miseri venenum letale cibum porrigunt ad amicos et filios suos, sicut Eva non intellexit quod utique mortem tradidit viro suo. Sic sunt omnes qui male agunt: mortem perennem poenam operantur. Consuetudo Romanorum Gallorum Christianorum: mittunt viros sanctos idoneos ad Francos et ceteras gentes cum tot milia solidorum ad redimendos captivos baptizatos. Tu potius interficis et vendis illos genti exterae ignoranti Deum; quasi in lupanar tradis membra Christi. Qualem spem habes in Deum, vel qui te consentit aut qui te communicat verbis adulationis? Deus iudicabit. Scriptum est enim: Non solum facientes mala sed etiam consentientes damnandi sunt. Sanctus Patricius Hibernorum Apostolus, Epistola Ad Coroticum  Migne PL 53. 816-817

They watch me with malice. What am I to do, O Lord? I am greatly despised. Behold, your sheep around me are torn and preyed upon, and by the thieves that I have spoken of, at the command of the hostile minded Coroticus. Far he is from the love of God who gives Christians into the hands of Scots and Picts. Rapacious wolves have devoured the flock of the Lord, 1 which under the greatest care was growing greatly in Ireland; I cannot count the number of sons of Scots and daughters of kings who are now monks and virgins of Christ. Thus the injuries of the righteous will not please you, even in the very depths it will not please. 2 Who among the holy would not be horrified to take pleasure or to enjoy a feast with such folk? With the spoil of dead Christians they have filled their houses, they live on plunder. These wretches do not know that they offer deadly poison as food to their friends and children, like Eve who did not understand that it was death that she gave to her man. 3 So it is with those who do evil, they work death as eternal punishment. It is the custom of the Christians of Roman Gaul to send holy and capable men to the Franks and to other pagans with so many thousands of coins to redeem the baptised who have been taken captive. You, however, kill and sell them to foreign people who are ignorant of God; as if into a brothel you hand over the members of Christ. 4 What hope have you in God, or who approves of you, or who sends you words of praise? God will judge. For it is written: 'Not only those who do evil, but also those who consent to it, will be damned.' 5 Saint Patrick Apostle of the Irish, Letter to Coroticus 1 Acts 20.29 2 Sirach 9.17 3 Gen 3.6 41 Cor 6.15 5 Rom 1.32

Drunkards and Fornicators

Πᾶς γὰρ μέθυσος καὶ πορνοκόπος πτωχεύσει καὶ ἐνδύσεται διερρηγμένα καὶ ῥακώδη πᾶς ὑπνώδης Πᾶς ὁ ἐν κακίᾳ μέθυσος, καὶ ὁ ἐκ σοφίας πρὸς ἀγνωσίαν καταπορνεύων, πτωχεύσει ἐκ θείας χάριτος· καὶ οὐκ ἐνδύσεται ἔνδυμα τοῦ γάμου πᾶς ὁ ἐν τῇ δαιμονιώδει νυκτὶ ὑπνώδης, ἀλλὰ τὴν ῥάκος τετραυματισμένην σάρκα διαθλίβων γεένης φλογα. Ὠριγένης, Ἐκλογαὶ Εἰς Παροιμίας

For every drunkard and fornicator shall be impoverished and he shall rise up torn and drowsy in rags. 1 Everyone who is drunk on wickedness has departed from wisdom and fornicates with ignorance, and impoverished he is of God's grace. And unendowed with the vestment of the bridegroom is everyone who sleeps in the demoniacal night, but like a rag his wounded flesh is ravaged by the fire of Ghenna. Origen, On Proverbs, Fragment 1 Prov 23.21

A Good Man's House

Διεπορευόμην ἐν ἀκακίᾳ καρδίας μου ἐν μέσῳ τοῦ οἴκου μου. Τῶν διαπορευομένων κατὰ τὰς τοῦ νόμου ἐνεργείας ὅσοι σὺν κακίᾳ κινοῦνται, ἐκτὸς ἑαυτῶν γίνονται, ἐμπαθῶς τοὶς αἰσθητοῖς προσκεχηνότες. Ἔθος γοῦν λέγειν τοὺς τοιούτους ἐκτὸς ἑαυτῶν καὶ ἐξεστηκότας εἴναι. Ὁ δὲ σὺν ἀκακίᾳ, τουτέστι σὺν ἀρετῇ, κινούμενος περὶ τὰ πρακτέα καὶ φρονητέα, πρὸς ἑαυτὸν κυκλικῶς τρέφεται ὅλως τοῦ νοῦ καὶ τῆς  ἐπιμελείας τοῦ ἔσω ἀνθρώπου γινόμενος, διαπορεύεται μεθ' ἔξεως βελτίστης ἐν μέσῳ τοῦ οἴκου αὐτοῦ. Οἴκος δὲ ἐκάστου τῶν σπουδαίων ἤν καθορθοῦσιν τὴν ἀρετήν. Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Ψαλμους, Ψαλμος  Ρ'

I walked in the innocence of my heart in the midst of my house. 1   They who walk according to the actions of the law, every time that evils beset, which seize by care for sensible things, are beyond them.  Whence this type of man we say is beyond these things and stands apart from them. He who is innocent, that is, he who possesses virtue, is moved regarding things to do and think only by those things which pertain to thought and care of the interior man, which thus surrounding him nourish him, and so in this best state in the midst of this house he walks, and the house of the righteous is that which virtue has perfected. Didymus the Blind, Commentary on the Psalms, from Psalm 100 1 Ps 100.2

The House of Virtue

Σταγόνες ἐκβάλλουσιν ἄνθρωπον ἐν ἡμέρᾳ χειμερινῇ ἐκ τοῦ οἴκου αὐτοῦ ὡσαύτως καὶ γυνὴ λοίδορος ἐκ τοῦ ἰδίου οἴκου   Τοῦ ἀνθρώπου οἶκος ἡ ἀρετή· ἐὰν οὖν μὴ σπουδαίως ταύτης ἐπιμελῆται, ἐν καιρῷ πειρασμῶν ἐκπιπτει αὐτῆς. Ὠριγένης, Ἐκλογαὶ Εἰς Παροιμίας

Dripping casts a man out on a winter day from his house, just like an abusive wife 1  The house of a man is virtue, if then he does not have diligent care of it, in the time of testing it shall fall. Origen, On Proverbs, Fragments 1 Prov 27.15

A Ruined House

Εἶπε πάλιν· Ἐπικίνδυνον, τὸν μὴ διὰ τοῦ πρακτικοῦ βίου ἀναχθέντα διδάσκειν. Ὥσπερ γὰρ ἐὰν ᾗ τις οἰκίαν ἔχων σαθρὰν, ξένους ὑποδεξάμενος, βλάψει τῇ πτώσει τοῦ οἰκήματος, οὕτως καὶ τοὺς προσελθόντας αὐτοῖς ἀπώλεσαν· τοῖς μὲν γὰρ λόγοις συνεκάλεσαντο εἰς σωτηρίαν, τῇ δὲ τοῦ τρόπου κακίᾳ τοὺς ἀθλητὰς μᾶλλον ἠδίκησαν. Ἄποφθέγματα των Αγίων Γερόντων, Παλλάδιος Ελενουπόλεως

Again Mother Syncletica said, 'It is dangerous for anyone to teach who has not first been trained in the practical life of virtue. For just as if someone who owns a ruined house receives guests there does harm to them because of the dilapidation of the dwelling, so he untrained causes damage to those who come to him. For by words one may call men to salvation, but by evil behaviour one injures them.' Sayings of the Desert Fathers, Palladius of Galatia

A Pope Laments His State

Quadam die nimiis quorumdam saecularium tumultibus depressus, quibus in suis negotiis plerumque cogimur solvere etiam quod nos certum est non debere, secretum locum petii amicum moeroris, ubi omne quod de mea mihi occupatione displicebat, se patenter ostenderet, et cuncta quae infligere dolorem consueverant, congesta ante oculos licenter venirent. Ibi itaque cum afflictus valde et diu tacitus sederem, dilectissimus filius meus Petrus diaconus adfuit, mihi a primaevo juventutis flore amicitiis familiariter obstrictus, atque ad sacri verbi indagationem socius. Qui gravi excoqui cordis languore me intuens, ait: Nunquidnam novi tibi aliquid accidit, quod plus te solito moeror tenet? Cui, inquam: Moeror, Petre, quem quotidie patior, et semper mihi per usum vetus est, et semper per augmentum novus. Infelix quippe animus meus occupationis suae pulsatus vulnere, meminit qualis aliquando in monasterio fuit; quomodo ei labentia cuncta subter erant; quantum rebus omnibus quae volvuntur eminebat; quod nulla nisi coelestia cogitare consueverat; quod etiam retentus corpore, ipsa jam carnis claustra contemplatione transibat; quod mortem quoque, quae pene cunctis poena est, videlicet ut ingressum vitae et laboris sui praemium amabat At nunc ex occasione curae pastoralis saecularium hominum negotia patitur, et post tam pulchram quietis suae speciem, terreni actus pulvere foedatur. Cumque se pro condescensione multorum ad exteriora sparserit, etiam cum interiora appetit, ad haec procul dubio minor redit. Perpendo itaque quid tolero, perpendo quod amisi. Dumque intueor illud quod perdidi, fit hoc gravius quod porto. Ecce etenim nunc magni maris fluctibus quatior, atque in navi mentis tempestatis validae procellis illidor. Et cum prioris vitae recolo, quasi post tergum ductis oculis viso littore suspiro. Quodque adhuc gravius est, dum immensis fluctibus turbatus feror, vix jam portum videre valeo quem reliqui, quia et ita sunt casus mentis, ut prius quidem perdat bonum quod tenet, si tamen se perdidisse meminerit; cumque longius recesserit, etiam boni ipsius quod perdiderat obliviscatur; fitque ut post neque per memoriam videat, quod prius per actionem tenebat. Unde hoc agitur quod praemisi, quia cum navigamus longius, jam nec portum quietis quem reliquimus videmus. Nonnunquam vero in augmentum mei doloris adjungitur, quod quorumdam vita qui praesens saeculum tota mente reliquerunt, mihi ad memoriam revocatur. Quorum dum culmen aspicio, quantum ipse in infirmis jaceam agnosco; quorum plurimi Conditori suo in secretiori vita placuerunt, qui ne per humanos actus a novitate mentis veterascerent, eos omnipotens Deus hujus mundi laboribus noluit occupari Sanctus Gregorius Magnus, Dialogi, Liber I

One day being excessively wearied with the troubles of worldly affairs in which business we are often bound far more than we should be, I sought a secluded place fit for lamentation, where every one of my occupations that displeased me might openly show itself, and that all things that are accustomed to inflict sorrow might be gathered together and present before my eyes. And thus having sat there gravely afflicted for a long while, Peter, my dearest son and deacon, came, a man whom, from his younger years, I bound closely to me in friendship, and as a companion in the investigation of Sacred Scripture. He, marking me beset by weakness of heart, said, 'Have some tidings come to you that cause you to grieve more than you are accustomed? ' To which I said, 'O Peter, the grief which I suffer every day is ever old through use and ever new by daily increasing. For my unhappy soul, belaboured with worldly business, reminds me of how it was when I was in the monastery, and how then all fallen things were beneath it, as much as it stood above all transitory things, and that it thought on nothing but heavenly things, and though enclosed in a body in contemplation it passed beyond the enclosure of the flesh. And as for death, which almost to all is grief, that very same as an entrance into life and as a reward of its labours it loved. But now, on account of my pastoral cares, my soul suffers the affairs of worldly men, and after so beautiful a rest, it is defiled with the dust of worldly deeds. And when it does go forth at the demand of many others to exterior matters, its desire for interior things on its return has lessened. Thus I do consider what I suffer and consider what I have lost. And looking on what I have lost makes what I now bear more grievous. For behold now I am tossed by the waves of a great sea and the ship of my soul is struck by the storms of a terrible tempest. And so when I recall my former state of life, I sigh as if looking back on a forsaken shore. And what grieves me yet more is that while I am borne off by the great waves I can now scarce see the port I left, for such be the downfalls of our soul, that first it loses that goodness it had, yet remembering what it has lost, and then, carried away farther, it forgets the good it has lost and no longer holds in memory what it did do. And so it is, as I said, that sailing farther on, we no longer see the harbour of peace from whence we departed. Sometimes also increase is given to my sorrow by remembering the lives of certain folk who with their whole soul abandoned the present world, whose eminence beholding, I also recognise my own infirmities and falls, many of whom did in a retired life please their Creator, who lest by the business of men they wear out their souls, the almighty God was unwilling they be occupied with the labours of this world. Saint Gregory the Great, Dialogues, Book 1

An Evil Way

Καὶ ἐρεῖς πῶς ἐμίσησα παιδείαν καὶ ἐλέγχους ἐξέκλινεν ἡ καρδία μου. Χριστοῦ γὰρ μὴ ῥυομένου, ὡς ἀγαθὴν ὁδεύσομεν τὴν κακήν· ἅγιοι μὲν γὰρ πάντα λέγουσι πιστά· τὰ δὲ οὕ· ὁ δὲ διάβολος οὐδὲν πιστὸν, ἀντὶ τοῦ, πίστεως ἄξιον· ἄνδρα γὰρ νῦν τὸν διἀβολον λέγει, ὡς ἐν Εὐαγγελίοις· εἴ γε ἄνθρωπος πονηρὸς ἔσπειρε τὰ ζιζάνια· μεγίστη δὲ ὡς ἔοικεν ἐπιβουλὴ, τὸ περιτυχεῖν βουλῇ κακῇ, καὶ ἀνδράσι δολίοις καὶ ὑπούλοις καὶ πονηροῖς. Ὠριγένης, Ἐκλογαὶ Εἰς Παροιμίας

And, alas, that I despised every teaching, and my heart rejected every warning. 1 For if Christ does not liberate us, we shall walk in the evil way as if it were good. For they who are blessed certainly say all things faithfully but the devil says nothing faithfully, that is, things worthy of trust. For here the devil is spoken of as if a man, as in the Gospel, when that wicked man sowed weeds, 2 and great plots appear, and a falling into depraved counsel, and that among clever and deceitful and wicked men. Origen, On Proverbs, Fragments 1 Prov 5.12 2 Mt 13.25

Knowledge and Night

Καὶ τὴν ἀλήθειάν σου κατὰ νύκτα Θεολογίας καὶ θεοπτείας ὑπόθεσις τυγχάνων, τέλος ἔχει τὴν ἀλήθειαν, ἢν ἀναγγέλλειν προσήκει, οὐκ ἐξ ἐπιπολῆς καὶ ἐκ τῶν φανερῶν πραγμάτων, ἀλλ' ἐκ βαθέων καὶ ἀποκρύφων, διαγνώσεως ὑπερβολήν. Τὴν δὲ σοφίαν τὴν ἐν τοῖς τοιούτοις ὠνόμασιν νυκτα· φύσει γὰρ τὰ περὶ Θεοῦ εὐσεβῶς και ὀρθῶς λεγόμενα, τῆς τῶν πολλῶν γνώσεως, διὰ μέγεθος δυνάμεως, ἀποδημεϊ. Νὺξ δὲ ἐστι διὰ τὸ δυσκατάληπτον· αὕτη δὲ νὺξ ἀναφορὰν ἔχει πρὸς τὸ σκότος, ὅ ἔθετο ὁ Θεὸς ἀποκρυφὴν αὐτοῦ. Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Ψαλμους, Ψαλμος ϞΑ'

And Your Truth through the night. 1    The true end of theology and Divine vision is not to attain to the announcement of obvious and manifest things but that which is deep and hidden, for that is highest knowledge. And the knowledge of such things is called night, for naturally when such things are spoken of God piously and rightly it escapes many minds, on account of the greatness of their power. Night, then, it is called because it is difficult to grasp. Night is when the darkness is brought forth, in which God places his hiding place. 2 Didymus the Blind, Commentary on the Psalms, Psalm 91 1 Ps 91.3 2 Ps 17.12

Unwelcome Teachers

Ὅς ἀποκρίνεται λόγον πρὶν ἀκοῦσαι ἀφροσύνη αὐτῷ ἐστιν καὶ ὄνειδος. Χρηστέον τούτῳ τῷ ῥητῷ πρὸς μὴ λαβόντας μὲν γνῶσιν παρὰ Θεοῦ διδάσκειν δὲ ἄλλους ἐπιχειροῦντας· ὁ γὰρ Δαυϊδ φησι· Τοῦ ἀκοῦσαι μὲν φωνῆς αἰνέσεώς σου, καὶ τότε διηγήσασθαι ἄλλοις τὰ θαυμάσια σου· καὶ ὁ Σολομῶν φησι· Ἄ εἶδον οἱ ὀφθαλμοί σου,  λέγε· πολλοὶ γὰρ καὶ ἀρετῆς μὴ ἀπαρξάμενοι, ἄλλους κατορθῶσαι οὐ μόνον παραινοῦσιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ βιάζονται καὶ παρακελεύουσιν. Ὠριγένης, Ἐκλογαὶ Εἰς Παροιμίας

He who answers before he has heard the full account is a fool and a disgrace. 1   Most useful this is against who have not received the knowledge of God, yet set themselves up as teachers of others. For David said, 'That I hear the voice of your praise, and then I will tell your wonders to others,' 2 And Solomon says, ' What your eyes have seen, tell' 3 Many indeed who have not yet started on the way of virtue not only exhort others to act rightly, but even use force and command them. Origen, On Proverbs, Fragments 1 Prov 18.13 2 Ps 15.7 3 Prov 25.8

Garments and Virtues

Ἐπισκέψομαι, φησὶν ἡ προφητεία, ἐπὶ τοὺς φοροῦντας ἱμάτια ἀλλότρια' Ὁ γὰρ μὴ κεκτημένος τὴν ἀρετὴν, ὑποκρινόμενος δὲ, καὶ σχηματιζόμενος ἀρετὴν ἔχειν, οὖτος εὔδηλον ἀλλοτρίαν στολὴν περιβάλλεται. Καὶ οἱ ἑτερόδοξοι δὲ προσποιούμενοι χρηστὰ διδάσκειν, ἐλέψχονται διὰ τῶν φαύλων δογμάτων, ἡλλοτριῶσθαι τῆς θείας ἀληθείας, καὶ τῆς δικαιοσύνης· περιεβάλοντο γὰρ ἀλλότριον φόρεμα, ὥσπερ λύκοι τὰ τῶν προβάτων κώδια.  Ἅγιος Νειλος, Βιβλιον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολὴ ΣΠΕ' Κορνηλιῳ

'I shall look down on those who wear different garments,' 1 the Prophet says. For he who does not adhere to virtue and yet deceitfully contends that he does possess it, is manifestly wearing foreign clothes. And the heterodox, claiming to teach good things while imbuing depraved teachings in others, is dragged far away from Divine truth and righteousness; for with foreign garments they have clothed themselves, like wolves in sheep's clothing.  Saint Nilus of Sinai, Book 1, Letter 185, To Cornelius 1 Zeph 1.8

Greater Works

Εἰ λόγοις ἐτρώθης, καὶ πρὸς ὀργὴν ἄσχετον ἐξηνέχθης, πῶς δύνασαι τοῦ Δεσποτικοῦ ἐργάτης γενέσθαι ἀμπελῶνος; τὸν γὰρ τὴν μίαν σιαγόνα παιόμενον, καὶ τὴν ἑτέραν προστιθέναι δυνάμενον, ἐλεῖνον εἶναι ὁριζεται, τὸν τὸ βάρος τῆς ἡμέρας καὶ τὸν καύσωνα φέροντα, ὡς πᾶσαν ἐργασίαν τῆς ἐντολῆς τοῦ Κυρίου πληρώσεντα. Εἰ οὖν ὀρέγῃ τῶν μεγάλων μισθῶν ἐκείνων, πρὸς τοὺς ἤττονας πόνους μὴ ἄλυε, ἀλλὰ στέργειν τοὺς μείζονας ἔθιζε, ὡς οὐκ ἄλλως δηνάριον κομιούμενος, εἰ μὴ κόπων τελειότητι μαρτυρούμενος. Ἅγιος Ἰσίδωρος Του Πηλουσιώτου, Βιβλιον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολὴ ϟΗ' Φροντινῳ Μονακῳ

If you are hurt by words and erupt with impotent anger, how will you be able to be a useful worker in the vineyard of the Lord? For he who suffers one blow on the cheek and the other is able to offer, he is chosen to bear the weight of the day and the heat, so that every work of the commandments of the Lord be fulfilled. If then you desire that great reward, be done with lesser works and exert yourself to greater cares, for you will not receive any pay if you do not bear witness to your toil to perfection. Saint Isidore of Pelusium, Book 1, Letter 98, To Phrontinos the Monk