Holiness And Truth

Σῶσον με, Κύριε, ὅτι ἐκλέλοιπεν ὅσιος, κ.τλ. Ἐκλείποντος ὁσίου, σωτηρίας δεῖται ὡς χαλεπώτερον περιγενόμενος. Ὅτι ὠλιγώθησαν αἱ ἀλήθεισι ἀπὸ τῶν υἱῶν τῶν ἀνθρώπων. Εἰ οἱ ὅσιοι ἐκλελοίπασιν, αἱ δὲ ἀλήθειαι ὠλιγώθησαν, οὐκ ἐν μόνοις τοῖς ὁσίοις αἱ ἀλήθειαι, καὶ οὑκ ἐν τοῖς ἀληθέσιν ὁσιότης. Καί ἐπειδὴ οἱ ὅσιοι ἐκλελοίπασι, διὰ τοῦτο ὠλιγώθησαν αἱ ἀλήθειαι. Καὶ τάχα ἡ σπάνις τῶν ὁσίων αἰτία γέγονε τῶν πολλῶν τούτων αἱρέσεων. Μετὰ δόλου ἀλλήλοις προσδιαλέγονται, διὰ πονηρῶν χειλέων εἰς τὴν ἀλλήλων καρδίαν τὰ ψευδῆ παραπέμποντες· ὅτε δὲ περὶ γνῶσιν οὐκ ἀσχολούμεθα, ὀλιγοῦνται αἱ ἀλήθειαι. Ὠριγένης, Εἰς Ψαλμους, Ψαλμος ΙΑ' Source:Migne PG 12 1200c

Save me, O Lord, because holiness has declined... 1 Holiness having declined, he prays that he might delivered from troubles. 'Because truth has diminished among the sons of men.' 1 If the holy has declined and truth has diminished, not in holiness alone is there truth, nor in truths holiness. But because the holy have declined, truths have indeed diminished. And perhaps the paucity of the holy is a cause of the multitude of heresies. With mutual cunning they converse together, and through wicked lips they send forth the falsehoods of their hearts to one another. Indeed when we do not attend to knowledge then truth diminishes. Origen, On the Psalms, from Psalm 11 1 Ps 11. 2