Conflict and Friendship

Καιρὸς γὰρ, φησὶ, πολέμου, καὶ καιρὸς εἰρήνης.  Ὁρᾷς τῶν ἀντικειμένων παθῶν τὴν παράταξιν, τὸν νόμον τῆς σαρκὸς, τὸν ἀντισταρευόμενον τῷ νόμῳ τῆς ἁμαρτίας. Πρόσχες τῇ ποικίλῃ τῆς μάχης διασκευῇ, πῶς μυριότοπος ἐστι κατὰ τῆς σῆς πόλεως ἡ τοῦ ἀντικειμένου στρατηγία· κατασκόπους πέμπει προδότας ὑποποιεῖται, ταῖς ὁδοῖς ἐφεδρεύει, λόχους καὶ ἔνεδρα συνίστησι, συμμαχους προσεταιρίζεται, μηχανήματα κατασκευάζει, σφενδονίτας καὶ τοξότας καὶ τοὺς συστάδην συμπλεκομένους, καὶ τὴν ἱππικὴν δύναμιν, καὶ πάντα τὰ τοιαῦτα κατὰ σοῦ ἐκστρατεύεται. Πάντως δὲ οὐκ ἀγνοεῖς τὴν τῶν εἰρημένων διάνοιαν, τίς ὁ προδότης, τίς ὁ κατάσκοπος, τίνες οἱ ἐνεδραυταὶ, τίνες οἱ σφενδονῖται, τίνες οἱ τοξόται, καὶ τίνες οἱ ἀγχέμαχοι, καὶ τῶν ἱππέων ἵλη. Πάντα οὖν βλέποντας χρὴ καὶ ἡμᾶς καθοπλίζεσθαι, καὶ τοὺς συμμάχους παρακαλεῖν, καὶ φιλοκρινεῖν ἐν τοῖς ὑποχειρίοις, μή τις τὰ τῶν πολεμίων φρονεῖ, προβλέπειν τε τὰς παροδίους ἐνέδρας, καὶ τυρεοῖς τὰς βολὰς ἀσφαλίζεσθαι, πρός τε τοὺς συστάδην ἡμῖν συμπλεκομένους ἄνωθεν, καὶ ἀποταφρεύειν τοῖς καθ' ἡμῶν ἱππόταις τὴν πάροδον. Ἥρμοζε δέ τισι καὶ προσβολαῖς τὰ τείχη καταφαλίζεσθαι, ὡς ἄν μὴ κατασεισθείη τοῖς μηχανήμασι. Πάντω; δὲ οὐδενὶ λόγῳ τὰ καθ' ἔκαστον  ἑρμηνευόμεθα, πῶς ὁ ἐχθρὸς τῆς ἐκάστον ἡμῶν πόλεως τῆς ἐν τῇ ψυχῇ  παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ συνῳκισμένης, ἢ διὰ κατασκόπων ἀποπεριᾶτα ἡμῶν τῆς δυνάμεως, καί τινας ἔχει τοὺς ἐξ ἡμῶν αὐτῶν προδότας γινομένους τῆς ἡμετέρας δυνάμεως. Ὡς δ' ἄν φανερώτερον τὸ νόημα ἐκκαλυφθείη, τοιοῦτόν ἐστιν ἡ πρώτη τοῦ πειρασμοῦ προσβολῆ, ὅθεν τὰ πάθη τὴν ἀρχὴν λαμβάνει. Οὗτος τῆς ἡμετέρας δυνάμεως κατάσκοπος γίνεται· οἷον, ἐνέπεσε τῷ ὀφθαλμῳ θέαμα τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν ἀνακεινίσαι δυνάμενον. Διὰ οὖν τούτου κατασκοπεῖ τὴν ἐν σοὶ δύναμιν ὁ πολέμιος, εἴτε ἰσχυρά τις καὶ εὐπαράσκευος ἐστιν, εἴτε ἄτονος καὶ εὐαλωτος. Εἰ γὰρ οὐκ ὤκλασας τῷ σχήματι, οὐδέ σοι πρὸς τὸ φανὲν διελύθη τῆς διανοίας ὁ τόνος, ἀλλ' ἀπαθῶς παρέμψας τὴν συντυχίαν, εὐθὺς  ἐπτόησας τὸν κατάσκοπον, οἶον ὁπλιτῶν τινα φάλαγγα τοῖς δόρασι φρίσσουσαν, τὴν τῶν λογισμῶν λέγω παρασκευὴν τῷ κατασκόπῳ δείξας. Εἰ δὲ μαλαχθείη δι' ἡδονῆς πρὸς τὴν θέαν ἡ αἴσθησις, καὶ τὸ τοῦ χαρακτῆτος εἴδωλον ἐντος τῆς διανοίας διὰ τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν εἰσδύῃ, τότε καταπολεμεῖται μὲν ὁ στρατηγὸς τῶν ἔνδον ὁ νοῦς, ὡς οὐδὲν ἀνδρῶδες ἢ νεανικὸν ἔχων, ἀλλὰ βλακώδης τις καὶ ἔκλυτος ὤν, καὶ πλῆθος προδοτῶν ἐκ τοῦ δήμου τῶν λογισμῶν περὶ τὸν κατάσκοπον συγκροτεῖται. Οὕτοι δέ εἰσιν οἱ προδόται, περὶ ὦν φησιν ὁ Κύριος, ὅτι Οἱ ἐχθροὶ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου οἱ οἰκειακοὶ αὐτο· οἱ τῆς καρδίας ἐκπορευόμενοι, καὶ κοινοῦντες τὸν ἄνθρωπον, ὦν τὰ ὀνόματα σαφῶς ἔστιν ἐκ τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου μαθεῐν. Τὸ δὲ ἀπὸ τούτο, οὐκεται ἄν σοι γένηται δυσχερὲς, δι' ἀκολούθου τὰ καθ' ἔκαστον τῆς πολεμικῆς ἐκείνης διασκευῆς κατανοῆσαι τῆς ἐκ τοῦ ἀφανοῦς προλοχεύοντος, οἶς περιπίπτουσιν οἱ ἀπροόπτως κατὰ τὴν τοῦ βίου ὁδὸν πορευόμενοι. Οἱ γὰρ ἐν σχήματι φιλίας καὶ εὐνοίας πρὸς τὸν τῆς ἁμαρτίας ὄλεθρον καθέλκοντες τὸν πειθόμενον, οὗτοι εἰσιν οἱ κατὰ τὰς ὁδοὺς ἐνεδρεύοντες, οἱ τῆς ἡδονῆς ἐπαινέται, οἱ πρὸς τὰ ἀποδεικύοντες, καὶ δι' ὦν ποιοῦσι πρὸς τὴν τῶν ὁμοίων μίμησιν ἐκκαλούμενοι, ἀδελφοὺς ἑαυτοὺς καὶ φίλους ἐπ' ὀλέθρῳ τῶν ἀπολλυμένων κατονομάζοντες. Περὶ ὦν γέγραπται, ὅτι Πᾶς ἀδελφὸς πτέρνῃ πτερνιεῖ· καὶ πᾶς φίλος δόλῳ πορεύσεται. Ἅγιος Γρηγόριος Νύσσης, Εἰς Τον Ἐκκλησιασην, Ὁμιλια Η'

'There is a time for peace and a time for war'. 1  Observe the marshaling of the conflicting passions, the law of the flesh which has been drawn up for the law of sin. 2 Take note of the various devices of battle and how vast is the army drawn up against your city. The enemy sends out scouts, dispatches spies, lays snares on roads, sets ambushes and traps, calls up allies, prepares machines of war, and places his slingers and archers and close combat warriors and cavalry, and all such things by which he can overcome you. Certainly you are acquainted with the ways of those we speak of, of the traitor, the scout, those who set snares, the slingers, the archers, those who engage in close combat, the troop of cavalry. Everyone then observing these must equip himself and summon his allies, mark well the state of those he rules lest they think to turn to revolt, watch out for snares on the road, protect himself with shield against wounds from flying shafts and the close combat warriors, dig trenches against the cavalry, and raise ramparts and protect the walls against assaults so that war machines may not shatter them. But there is no need to speak of everything by which the enemy of each of our cities in our souls established by God takes measure of our strength by scouts and by that implants traitors in the midst of our power. Such does this image revealed clarify the first attack of temptation, which is the beginning of passion. Such is the one who spies on our strength and marks with his eye what assaults  stir up our desire. Thus the enemy examines your strength, learning whether you are strong and prepared, or weak and negligent. For if this examination does not make you faint, nor the gaze weaken the firmness of your mind, and if you shake it off free from passion, you immediately frighten the spy like some phalanx of arms bristling with spears, which are your thoughts, I say, prepared to expose the spy. But if softness by pleasure has come in by vision, an image entering the inner place of the mind through the eyes, then the mind of the commander within is overcome, since he not only lacked bravery or was youthful, but was lazy and negligent on account of which many traitors from the people of our own thoughts will assist the spy. These are the traitors of whom the Lord says, 'A man's foes will be of his own household'. 3 He refers to the things going forth from the heart which defile a man, 4 which we clearly learn from the Gospel. And by this no longer is it unclear to us what are the devices of our enemy, that he sets ambushes to fall unexpectedly upon travellers going along the road of this life. Those who assume the mask of amity and goodwill in order to draw a person to sin and so destroy him, these are the ones who skulk at the roadside, those who praise pleasure and lead one to the shows, and by which they draw others to imitate their behaviour, to utter ruin calling themselves brothers and friends. Concerning whom it is written: 'Every man will surely supplant, and every friend will walk craftily' 5 Saint Gregory of Nyssa, On Ecclesiastes, from Homily 8 1 Eccl 3.8 2 Rom 7.23 3 Mt 10.36  4 Mt 15.18  5 Jer 9.4