Deeds And Company

Ὁ γνωστικὸς οὗτος συνελόντι εἰπεῖν τὴν ἀποστολικὴν ἀπουσίαν ἀνταναπληροῖ, βιοὺς ὀρθῶς, γιγνώσκων ἀκριβῶς, ὠφελῶντοὺς ἐπιτηδείους, τὰ »ὄρη μεθιστὰς« τῶν πλησίον καὶ τὰς τῆς ψυχῆς αὐτῶν ἀνωμαλίας ἀποβάλλων. Καίτοι ἕκαστος ἡμῶν αὑτοῦ τε ἀμπελὼνκαὶ ἐργάτης. Ὃ δὲ καὶ πράσσων τὰ ἄριστα λανθάνειν βούλεται τοὺς ἀνθρώπους, τὸν Κύριον ἅμα καὶ ἑαυτὸν πείθων, ὅτι κατὰ τὰς ἐντολὰς βιοῖ, προκρίνων ταῦτα ἐξ ὧν εἶναι πεπίστευκεν ὅπου γὰρ ὁ νοῦς τινος«, φησίν,»ἐκεῖ καὶ ὁ θησαυρὸς αὐτοῦ, αὐτὸς ἑαυτὸν μειονεκτεῖ πρὸς τὸ μὴ ὑπεριδεῖν ποτε ἐν θλίψει γενόμενον ἀδελφὸν διὰ τὴν ἐν τῇ ἀγάπῃ τελείωσιν, ἐὰν ἐπίστηται μάλιστα ῥᾷον ἑαυτὸν τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ τὴν ἔνδειαν οἴσοντα. Ἡγεῖται γοῦν τὴν ἀλγηδόνα ἐκείνου ἴδιον ἄλγημα· κἂν ἐκ τῆς ἑαυτοῦ ἐνδείας παρεχόμενος δι᾿ εὐποιίαν πάθῃ τι δύσκολον, οὐ δυσχεραίνει ἐπὶ τούτῳ, προσαύξει δὲ ἔτι  μᾶλλον τὴν εὐεργεσίαν. Ἔχει γὰρ ἄκρατον πίστιν τὴν περὶ τῶν πραγμάτων, τὸ εὐαγγέλιον δι᾿ ἔργων καὶ θεωρίας ἐπαινῶν. Καὶ δὴ »οὐ τὸν ἔπαινον παρὰ ἀνθρώπων, ἀλλὰ παρὰ τοῦ θεοῦ καρποῦται, ἃ ἐδίδαξεν ὁ Κύριος, ταῦτα ἐπιτελῶν. Οὗτος περισπώμενος ὑπὸ τῆς ἰδίας ἐλπίδος οὐ γεύεται τῶν ἐν κόσμῳ καλῶν, πάντων τῶν ἐνταῦθα καταμεγαλοφρονῶν· οἰκτείρων τοὺς μετὰ θάνατον παιδευομένους διὰ τῆς κολάσεως ἀκουσίως ἐξομολογουμένους, εὐσυνείδητος πρὸς τὴν ἔξοδον καὶ ἀεὶ ἕτοιμος ὤν, ὡς ἂν παρεπίδημος καὶ ξένος τῶν τῇδε, κληρονομημάτων μόνων τῶν ἐδίων μεμνημένος, τὰ δὲ ἐνταῦθα πάντα ἀλλότρια ἡγούμενος· οὐ μόνον θαυμάζων τὰς τοῦ Κυρίου ἐντολάς, ἀλλ᾿ ὡς ἔπος εἰπεῖν δι᾿ αὐτῆς τῆς γνώσεως μέτοχος ὢν τῆς θείας βουλήσεως, οἰκεῖος ὄντως τοῦ Κυρίου καὶ τῶν ἐντολῶν, ἐξειλεγμένος ὡς δίκαιος, ἡγεμονικὸς δὲ καὶ βασιλικὸς ὡς ὁ γνωστικός, χρυσὸν μὲν πάντα τὸν ἐπὶ γῆς καὶ ὑπὸ γῆν καὶ βασιλείαν τὴν ἀπὸ περάτων ἐπὶ πέρατα ὠκεανοῦ ὑπερορῶν, ὡς μόνης τῆς τοῦ Κυρίου ἀντέχεσθαι θεραπείας. Διὸ καὶ ἐσθίων καὶ πίνων καὶ γαμῶν, ἐὰν ὁ λόγος αἱρῇ, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὀνείρους βλέπων τὰ ἅγια ποιεῖ καὶ νοεῖ· ταύτῃ καθαρὸς εἰς εὐχὴν πάντοτε. Ὁ δὲ καὶ μετ᾿ ἀγγέλων εὔχεται. ὡς ἂν ἤδη καὶ »ἰσάγγελος«. οὐδὲ ἔξω ποτὲ τῆς ἁγίας φρουρᾶς γίνεται· κἂν μόνος εὔχηται, τὸν τῶν ἁγίων χορὸν συνιστάμενον ἔχει. Κλήμης ὁ Ἀλεξανδρεύς, Στρωματεων, Λόγος Ζ', Κεφ ΙΒ' Source: Migne PG 9.505b-508c

The wise man, to speak briefly, compensates for the Apostolic absence by living rightly, knowing accurately, and by being a fitting helper,  'removing the mountains' 1 of his neighbours in the casting away the irregularities of their soul. Although indeed each of us is his own vineyard and labourer. But he, while doing the most excellent things, wishes to elude the notice of men, persuading the Lord and himself that he lives according to the commandments, choosing to do these things which he believes. 'For where a man's mind is, there also is his treasure.' 2 He is poor that he may not overlook a brother in affliction through the perfection that is in love, especially if he knows that he himself will endure want easier than his brother. He considers the other's pain his own grief, and if, by giving from his poverty for the doing of good, he suffer some hardship, he does not worry about this, but rather increases his good works even more. For he has the pure faith which, concerning deeds, praises the Gospel in its acts and in its contemplation. And certainly not from men but from God he receives his praise, 3 by accomplishing the things the Lord taught. This man, drawn off by his own hope, does not taste the fair things of the world, but has a noble contempt for everything here, pitying those who after death are chastised by punishment to make unwilling confession, while having a clear conscience for his own departure, and always being ready, as 'a stranger and pilgrim,' 4 for inheritances here; mindful only of those his own, and considering all things here as not his own, not only admiring the Lord's commandments, but, so to speak, being one who by wisdom itself is a partaker of the Divine will, a truly chosen intimate of the Lord and His commandments, on account of being a righteous man, and princely and kingly as wise, disregarding all the gold on the earth and under the earth, and dominion from shore to shore of ocean, so that he may hold to the sole service of the Lord. And so also in eating and drinking and marrying, if the Word bids, and even in dreams, he does and thinks what is holy. So he is always pure for prayer. And so he prays in the company of angels, as if already of angelic rank, and he is never out of their holy keeping, and though he pray alone, he has the choir of holy ones standing with him. Clement of Alexandria, from the Stromata, Book 7, Ch 12 1 cf Mt 17.20 2 Mt 6.21 3 Rom 2.29, Jn  4 cf 1 Peter 2.11