Study Wisdom

Ad sapientiae studiosam acquisitionem; Proverbiorum vigesimo septimo: Stude sapientie, fili mi. Filium vocat, quemcumque paterna affectione informat, sive sit iuvenis, sive senex. Augustinus: Ad discendum quod opus est nulla mihi aetas sera videri potest; quia, etsi senes magis docere deceat quam doceri, magis tamen decet eos discere, quam quid doceant ignorare. Stude, inquit, et hoc innuit vehementem diligentiam circa acquisitionem sapientiae adhibendam. Studium enim, ut dicit Tullis, est vehemens applicatio animi cum summa voluptate ad aliquid agendum. Haec autem vehemens animi applicatio requirit vacationem ab exterioribus occupationibus. Impar enim efficitur ad singula qui confusa mente dividitur ad multa, ut dicit Gergorius. Propter quod Ecclesiastici trigesimo octavo: Sapientiam scribe in tempore vacuitatus, id est vacationis ab opere exteriori; qui enim minoratur actu, scilicet exteriori, percipiet sapientiam, ut dicitur in eodem. Sanctus Bonaventura, Commentarius In Librum Sapientiae, Prooemium Source: Here, 358c

Concerning the studious acquisition of wisdom, it is said in the twenty seventh chapter of Proverbs, 'Study wisdom, my son.' 1 He names him a son whoever he shapes with fatherly love, whether he is a youth or an old man. Augustine says: 'It does not seem to me that old age should be an obstacle to learning, because even if it befits the old to teach rather than to be taught, yet it is more befitting to learn something than to be ignorant of what one should teach.' 2 'Study,' it says here, and this signifies attachment to a concentrated desire for the acquisition of wisdom. For as Cicero says, 'Studiousness is the concentrated application of the soul with great pleasure for the accomplishment of something.' 3 But this concentrated application of the soul requires leisure from exterior occupations, since flaws come into each thing when a confused mind is divided among many things, as Gregory says. 4 About which it says in the thirty eighth chapter of Ecclesiasticus: 'Write wisdom in a time of quiet.' 5 That is, when one has leisure from exterior work. And in the same place: 'For he who is less in deeds,' that is exterior ones, 'acquires wisdom.' Saint Bonaventura, Commentary On Wisdom, Introduction 1 Prov 27.11 2 Aug Epist 166.1 3 Circero Rhet 1.25 4 Greg Reg Past 1.4 5 Sirach 38.25

Virtue And Quiet

Ὁ διαπεράσαι θέλων τήν νοητὴν θάλασσαν, μακροθυμεῖ, ταπεινοφρονεῖ ἀγρυπνει, ἐγκρατεύεται. Ἐκτὸς δὲ τῶν τεσσάρων τούτων ἐὰν εἰσελθεῖν βιάσηται, θορυβεῖ τὴν καρδίαν, περάσαι δὲ οὐ δύναται. Ἡσυχία ὠφελεῖ, τῶν κακῶν ἀργήσασα. Ἐὰν δὲ καὶ τὰς τέσσαρας ἀρετὰς ἐν προσευχῇ προσλάβῃ βοήθημα, πρὸς ἀπάθειαν οὐδὲν αὐτῇ συντομώτερον. Ἅγιος Μάρκος ὁ Ἐρημίτης, Περὶ Τῶν Οἰομένων Ἐξ Ἔργων Δικαιοῦσθαι Source: Migne PG 65.936a

He who would willingly cast himself into the spiritual sea requires long suffering, humility, vigilance and temperance. Without these four, if someone tries to enter, his heart is troubled, and he cannot. Quiet is of benefit when it has leisure from the vices, and if the four aforementioned virtues have been received for help in prayer, since nothing else can achieve the untroubled state. Saint Mark The Ascetic, On Those Who Think Themselves Justified By Works

The Sabbath And Freedom

Τὸ ἐν τῷ νόμῳ εἰρημένον, οὐκ ἔστιν ἁπλοῦν, ἀλλ' ἔχει τινὰ διπλόην τοῖς· παχέσι κεκαλυμμένην, τοῖς δὲ λεπτοῖς γεγυμνωμένην. Ἡ ἡμέρα, φησὶν, ἡ ἐβδόμη, κλητὴ ἁγία ἔσται ὑμῖν. Πᾶν ἔργον λατρευτὸν οὐ ποιήσετε ἐν αὐτῇ, πλὴν ὅσα ποιηθήσεται πάσῃ ψυχῇ. Λατρείαν ἐνταῦθα τὴν δουλείαν καλεῖ. Οὐδὲν οὖν, φησὶ τῶν δουλοπρεπῶν, καὶ οἰονεὶ ἀνδραποδιζόντων ὑμᾶς ἀπὸ τῆς πρὸς Θεὸν σχολῆς, ἐργάσεσθε ἐν Σαββάτῳ, ὃ καταφορτίζει ὑμᾶς βάρει ἁμαρτημάτων· ἀνέσεως γὰρ καὶ ἀφέσεώς ἐστιν ἡ ἡμέρα· κὰι οὐ χρὴ συνδέσμοις κακῶν τὸ ἀξίωμα αὐτῆς ἐνυβρίζεσθαι· τὸ δὲ, ὅσα ποιηθήσεται πάσῃ ψυχῇ, χρῆναι ἐργάζεσθαι, ὅσα τῇ ψυχῇ φέρει τὸ κέρδος, ταῦτα πληροῦν ἐνομοθέτησεν, εὐχὴν, προσευχὴν, ἡσυχίαν, νουθεσίαν, εὐποιίαν, σωφροσύνην, ἐγκράρειαν, ἀλήθειαν, ἀγνείαν, καὶ ὅσα τούτοις ὑπὸ πόδας εἴρηται, ἅπερ εἰς τὸν ἔσθω διαβαίνοντα ἄνθρωπον, τῶν ἔξω ἐλευθεροῖ σκανδάλων καὶ περιστάσεων, ἐκνικῶντος τοῦ κρείττονος Ἅγιος Ἰσίδωρος Του Πηλουσιώτου, Βιβλιον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολή ΟΑ´ Ἡλιωνι Μοναχῳ Source: Migne PG 78.232a-b

That which is spoken of in the Law does not have a single meaning but a twofold one, and the more weighty part is hidden and the lighter is obvious. It says, 'You shall call the seventh day holy and you shall do no servile work on it.' 1 that is, as much as it shall touch any part of the soul. The servile here is what is slavish. Let there be nothing, then, befitting slavishness. And judge this to be whatever enslaves you apart from leisure for God, putting you to work on the Sabbath, burdening you with the weight of sin. For it is a day of leisure and of freedom, and one must not insult the dignity of it by being bound up in evils, but it commands that one should attend to whatever benefits the whole soul completely, that is, preaching, contemplation, exhortation, good deeds, modesty, continence, truth, chastity, and whatever is said below, which things passing into the inner man delivers him from scandals and trials, since what is better prevails. Saint Isidore of Pelusium, Book 1, Letter 71, to Helion the Monk 1 Levit 23.3

The Sabbath

Τοῦτο τὸ ῥημα ὄ ἐλάλησε Κύριος· Σάββατα, ἀνάπαυσις ἁγία τῷ Κυρίῷ αὕριον. Ἀπογράφομαι τὰ περὶ τοῦ σαββάτου εἰρημένα· πρῶτον κατὰ το ῥητὸν, ἵν' ἴδωσι τί σημαίνει τὸ γράμμα· δεύτερον δὲ κατὰ τὴν ἀναγωγὴν, καθ' ἤν εἴποιμι ἂν ἡμέραν σαββάτου ἑνεστηκέναι τῷ δικαίῳ καταλύσαντι τὰ τοῦ κόσμου ἔργα, καὶ δοξάζοντι τὸν Θεὸν, καὶ σχολάζοντι, μήτε τοῦ τόπου ἐν ᾦ ἔστηκε τοῦ Χριστοῦ, ἀφισταμένῳ· μήτε πῦρ καίοντι, κατὰ τὸ μηδὲν ἁμαρτάνειν· μήτε βαστάγματα αἴροντι. Βάσταγμα ὄρους βαρύτερον πᾶσα ἁμαρτία· διὸ ἔλεγεν ὁ Ὑμνῳδὸς· Ὠσεὶ φορτίον βαρὺ ἐβαρύνθησαν ἐπ' ἐμέ. Ἑτέρα δὲ ἀπογραφὴ ἂν εἴη σαββάτου, καθ' ἤν ἀπολείπεται σαββατισμὸς τῷ λαῷ τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἀνάπαυσις ἱερὰ καὶ ἁγία. Ὁ δὲ ποιήσας πάντα τὰ ἔργα αὐτοῦ, ἄξιος κρίνεται ἐκείνου τοῦ Σαββάτου· σχολάζων οὐδενὶ ἢ τῇ θεωρίᾳ της αληθείας, καὶ τῆς σοφίας. Ὠριγένης, Ἐκλογαὶ Εἰς Την Ἐξοδον Source: Migne PG 12.289a-b

This is the word the Lord spoke, 'Tomorrow is the Sabbath, the rest holy to the Lord.' 1 I shall expound what is said concerning the Sabbath first according to the plain word, so that what the letter means shall be apparent, and then according to the spiritual understanding, according to which I may say that the Sabbath day is fitting for the righteous man to make an end of the works of the world, and to glorify God, and to be at peace, and not to withdraw from the place in which he stands, which is obviously Christ, nor does he kindle the fire of sin, nor does he carry burdens. Heavier than the weight of a mountain is every sin, as the Psalmist said: 'As a burden weighing greatly upon me.' 2 Another exposition of the Sabbath is that 'there remains a Sabbath for the people of God,' 3 which is sacred and holy rest. And he who has performed all his work is judged worthy of this Sabbath, having leisure for nothing else but the contemplation of truth and wisdom. Origen, On Exodus, Fragment 1 Exod 16.23 2 Ps 37.5 3 Heb 4.9

Finding Rest

Πάντα τὸν χρόνον οἱ ὀφθαλμοὶ τῶν κακῶν προσδέχονται κακά οἱ δὲ ἀγαθοὶ ἡσυχάζουσιν διὰ παντός Ἡσυχία ἐστιν ἀποχὴ κακίας ἐμπράκτου καὶ ὁράσεων, ἥν οἱ ἀγαθοὶ ἡσυχάζουσιν· οἱ δὲ τοῦ νοὸς καὶ σώματος ὀφθαλμοὶ τῶν κακῶν, πάντα τὸν χρόνον ἐπινοοῦνται κακά. Ὠριγένης, Ἐκλογαὶ Εἰς Παροιμίας, Κεφ ΙE´ Source: Migne PG 17.193c

The eyes of the wicked are always eagerly receiving evils, but the good are ever at rest. 1 Rest is to be rid of wicked deeds and sights, and by this the good have their rest. But the mind and the bodily eyes of the wicked are always contemplating evils. Origen, On Proverbs, Chapter 15 1 Prov 15.15

Cares And Contemplation

Sollicitudo etenim necessario turbat, sicut scriptum est, Sollicita es, et turbaris ergo plurima: cura vero gravat. Unde est illud Domini: Ne graventur corda nostra crapula et ebrietate, et curis hujus saeculi. Sollicitudo male sustollit, cura pejus deprimit, acedia pessime dissolvit. Mens enim in otio acediosa fructum actionis perdit, et contemplationis lucem minime invenit. Porro depressa curis, in altum se nequaquam erigit, turbata serena esse nequit. Cor enim quod tranquillim non est, serenum esse nullatenus potest, sin autem serenum, nec perlucidum. Cor vero contemplantis perlucere oportet, tanquam speculum, aut aquam limpidissimam et quietem, ut in ipso, ac per ipsum, sicut in speculo, per speculum, videat mens suam ad imaginem Deo imaginem. Ad hoc ergo cor mundandum est Deum speculari cupientis, non solum a noxiis ac superfluis, sed etiam necessariis cruis: et excitandum lectione, meditatione, oratione. Beati enim mundicordes, quoniam ipsi Deum videbunt: quod ipse nobis prestare dignetur. Isaac, Cisterciensis Abbas, Sermo XXV Source: Migne PL 194.1774b-c

Indeed worry does trouble one, as it has been written: 'You are worried and therefore troubled by many things.' 1 but care is a burden. Whence our Lord's warning: 'Do not let your hearts grow dull with revelry and drunkenness and with the cares of this world. 2 Worry wickedly occupies, worldly care is a worse burden, listlessness is the worst ruin. A soul in listless leisure loses the fruit of its action and never finds the light of contemplation. A mind oppressed by cares can no more raise itself on high than a troubled mind can know peace. A heart which is not tranquil is far from being peaceful, and equally far from being bright with light. But a contemplative heart must be as bright as a mirror, like some still stretch of clear water, so that in it and through it, as in a mirror, the mind may see itself, 3 an image in the image of God. The heart, therefore, which desires the sight of God must be cleansed, not only from harmful and unneeded cares, but even necessary ones. It must be ever stimulated by reading and meditation and prayer. 'Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God,' 4 which may He deign to grant to us. Isaac of Stella, from Sermon 25 1 Lk 10.41 2 Lk 21.34 3 1 Cor 13.12 4 Mt 5.8

Work And Wealth

Ὁ ἐργαζόμενος τὴν ἑαυτοῦ γῆν πλησθήσεται ἄρτων ὁ δὲ διώκων σχολὴν πλησθήσεται πενίας Ὁ καθαίρων ἑαυτον ἐκ τῶν παθῶν, καὶ ἐργαζόμενος τὰς ἐντολὰς τοῦ Θεοῦ, τοῦ ψυχοτρόφου ἄρτου σοφίας καὶ γνώσεως Θεου ἐμλησθήσεται· ὁ δὲ διώκων σχολὴν τοῦ μὴ ποιεῖν τὰς ἐντολὰς τοῦ Θεοῦ, πλησθήσεται πενίας. Ὠριγένης, Ἐκλογαὶ Εἰς Παροιμίας, Κεφ ΚΘ' Source: Migne PG 17.245a

He who works the earth fills himself with bread and he who pursues leisure shall be filled with poverty. 1 He who in cleansing himself of the passions, labours over the commandments of God, he feeds the soul with the bread of wisdom and is filled with the knowledge of God. But he who pursues leisure, neglecting the commandments of God, he shall be filled with poverty. Origen, On Proverbs, Fragment 1 Prov 28.19

Leisure And Works

Ὅτι ἡ ἀργία ἀρχή κακουργίας τοῖς ἀπαιδεύτοις γίνεται, καὶ αὐτὸς συνομολογεῖς, καὶ ὅτι μὴ ἔχοντες τί πρᾶξαι οἱ Ἐβραῖοι ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ εἰς εἰδελατρίαν ἐξέπεσαν, γινώσκεις. Μὴ οὖν βδελύττου τὸ ἔργον τὸ τῶν χειρῶν, ὅτι ὠφέλιμον, καὶ πάνυ νηφάλιον. Ἅγιος Νειλος, Βιβλίον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολή ΤΙ' Ἐλλαδιῳ Ἀναγνωστῃ Source: Migne PG 79.195 a-b

That idleness is the beginning of evil works to the uneducated, you will allow, and you know that having no work to do the Hebrews in the desert fell into idol worship. Do not, then, despise manual work, for it is useful and indeed sensible. Saint Nilus of Sinai, Book 1, Letter 310, To Helladius the Lector

Work And Leisure

Ὁ νόμος ἓξ ἡμέρας τυπικῶς ἐργάζεσθαι, τῇ δὲ ἑβδόμῃ σχολάζειν παρακελεύεται· διότι ψυχῆς ἔργον ἐστὶν ἡ διὰ χρημάτων εὐποιία· σχολὴ δὲ αὐτῆς καὶ κατάπαυσις, τὸ πωλῆναι πάντα, καὶ δοῦναι πτωχοῖς κατὰ τὸν λόγον τοῦ Κυρίου· καὶ διὰ τῆς ἀκτημοσύνης καταπαύσαντα τῇ νοερᾷ σχολάζειν ἐλπίδι. Εἰς ταύτην τὴν κατάπαυσιν καὶ ὁ Παῦλος ἡμῶν μετὰ σπουδῆς προτρέπεται λέγων· Σπουδάσωμεν εἰσελθεῖν εἰς ἐκείνην τὴν κατάπαυσιν. Ταῦτα δὲ εἰρήκαμεν, οὐκ ἀποκλείοντες τὰ μέλλοντα, οὖτε ὧδε τὴν καθολικὴν ἀνταπόδοσιν εἶναι ὁρίσαντες· ἀλλ' ὅτι χρὴ πρῶτον ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ ἔχειν τὴν χάριν τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος ἐνεργοῦσαν, καὶ οὔτω κατ' ἀναλογίαν εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν. Τοῦτο φανεροποιῶν ὁ Κύριος, ἔλεγεν· Ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν ἐντὸς ὑμῶν ἐστι. Τοῦτο καὶ ὁ Ἀπόστολος ἔλεγεν· Ἔστι πίστις ἐλπιζομένων ὑπόστασις· καὶ πάλιν· Οὕτως τρέχετε, ἵνα καταλάβητε· καὶ πάλιν· Δοκιμάζετε ἑαυτοὺς εἴ ἐστε ἐν τῇ πίστει· εἰ δὲ οὐκ ἐπιγινώσκετε ὅτι Χριστὸς Ἰησοῦς οἰκεῖ ἐν ὑμῖν; εἰ μήτι ἂρα ἀδόκιμοί ἐστε. Ἅγιος Μάρκος ὁ Ἐρημίτης, Περὶ Τῶν Οἰομένων Ἐξ Ἔργων Δικαιοῦσθαι Source: MignePG 65.952a-b

The law commands as a type that six days are for work and the seventh for leisure, 1 because the work of the soul is the making of goods, and its leisure and rest is to sell everything and to give it to the poor, according to the word of the Lord, 2 and so by a restful poverty in the mind it has leisure for hope. To this rest Paul calls all of us with zeal, saying: 'Let us make haste to enter into that rest.' 3 And we say this not to the exclusion of the future, nor to the limitation of the fullness of reward here, but that one must first have the grace of the Holy Spirit working in the heart, and according to that measure one enters into the kingdom of heaven. This the Lord made clear when he said, 'The kingdom of heaven is within you.' 4 And the Apostle said: 'Faith is the substance of things hoped for.' 5 And again: 'So run that you might seize.' 6 And again: 'Examine yourselves, if you stand in the faith. For how do you not know if Christ is in you, unless perhaps you are condemned?' 7 Saint Mark The Ascetic, from On Those Who Think Themselves Justified By Works 1 Exod 34.21 2 Mt 19.21 3 Heb 4.11 4 Lk 17.21 5 Heb 11.1 6 1 Cor 9.24 7 2 Cor 13.5

Freedom And Knowledge

Σκολάσατε καὶ γνῶτε, ὅτι ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ Θεὸς, ὑψωθήσομαι ἐν τοῖς ἔθνεσιν, ὑψωθήσομαι ἐν τῇ γῇ.   Ἐπειδὴ λοιπὸν πέπαυτο τὰ τοῦ πολέμου καὶ λέλυτο τὰ τῆς ταραχῆς, ἐιρήνη δὲ βαρεῖα δέδοτο τοῖς ἐπὶ γῆς ἄπασαν· εἰκότως βούλεται εἰς ἀγαθὸν χρῆσθαι τῷ καιρῷ, καὶ σχολὴν ἀναλαβεῖν ψυχῆς σωτήριον. Διό φησι· Σκολάσατε καὶ γνῶτε· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἑτέρως ἔστι γνώσεως μετασχεῖν θείας, μὴ σχολάσαντα τῶν  ἀφελκόντων ἐπὶ τὰνατια. Ἔνθεν εἰκότως ὁ τῆς Αἰγύπτου βασιλεὺς, πρὸς τὴν τοιαύτην διαβεβλημένος σχολὴν, τοῖς φάσκουσιν· Ὁδὸν τριῶν ἡμερῶν πορευσόμεθα, καὶ λατρεύσομεν Κυρίῳ τῷ Θεῷ ἡμῶν, ἀποκρίνεται λέγων· Σκολάζετε, σχολασται ἐστε. Εἶτα, μὴ βουλόμενος αὐτοὺς τῷ Θεῷ σχολάζειν, καταπνεῖ τῷ πηλῷ καὶ τῇ πλινθείᾳ. Ἀλλ' ἡμῖν γε οἱ καταστάντες ἄρχοντες ἐπὶ πᾶσαν τὴν γὴν ἐπιβοῶσι σχολάζειν, καρπὸν τῆς σχολῆς ἐπαγγελλόμενοι τὴν ἔνθεν γνῶσιν. Λαλεῖ δὲ ὁ Θεὸς δι' αὐτῶν λέγων· Γνῶτε ὅτι ἐγω εἰμι ὁ Θεὸς· ἀλλὰ καὶ ὅτι ὑψωθήσομαι ἐν τοῖς ἔθνεσιν, ὑψωθήσομαι ἐν τῇ γῇ. Πὰλαι μὲν γὰρ παρὰ Ἰουδαίοις ἐγινωσκόμην μόνοις, ὅτε γνωστὸς ἐν  τῇ Ἰουδαίᾳ ὁ Θεὸς, ἐν τῷ Ἰσραὴλ μέγα τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ· νυνὶ δὲ ὑμῖν παρακελεύομαι σχολὴν ἄγειν, ὡς ἂν μάθοιτε καὶ γνῶτε τίνα τρόπον καὶ παρὰ πᾶσι τοῖς ἔθνεσιν ὑψωθήσονμαι, δοξαζόμενος παρ' αὐτοῖς μᾶλλον ἢ παρὰ τοῖς πάλαι με εἰδέναι νομιζομένοις. Εὐσέβιος ὁ Καισάρειος, Ὑπομνηματα Ἐις Τους ψαλμους, ψαλμος ΜΕ' Source: Migne PG 23.412-413

Be free and know that I am God; I shall be exalted among the peoples and exalted on the earth. 1 Because wars have at last ceased and trouble has passed away, and deep peace is for all who were dwelling in that part of the earth, rightly He wishes for good in that time and to lead the soul at leisure to salvation. Whence he says, 'Be free and know,' for no one is able to partake of the Divine knowledge unless he is free from things that will drag him off to what is contrary. Whence with reason the king of Egypt against such leisure argued, opposing those who said, 'Three days we shall go on our journey, and we shall attend to the Lord our God,' to these words replying, 'You are at leisure, you are lazy.' And unwilling to give them leisure for God, he afflicted them with the making of mud bricks. 2 But to us who across the whole world have established rulers crying out that one should be free, the promised fruit of leisure is known there. And truly through them God speaks, saying, 'Know that I am God,' and even that,' I shall be exalted among the peoples, and exalted on the earth.' Of old only among the Jews was He know, when it was that, ' God is known in Judea, in Israel His name is great;' 3 But now indeed I exhort you to be free, that you might learn and know, and that I may be exalted among all the peoples, and indeed be celebrated more by them than by those who once thought they knew me. Eusebius of Caesarea, from Commentary on the Psalms, from Psalm 45 1 Ps 45.11 2 Exodus 5 1-18  3 Ps 75. 2

A Philosophy For The Few

Οὐ παντός, ὦ οὗτοι, τὸ περὶ θεοῦ φιλοσοφεῖν, οὐ παντός· οὐχ οὕτω τὸ πρᾶγμα εὔωνον καὶ τῶν χαμαὶ ἐρχομένων. Προσθήσω δέ, οὐδὲ πάντοτε, οὐδὲ πᾶσιν, οὐδὲ πάντα, ἀλλ' ἔστιν ὅτε, καὶ οἷς, καὶ ἐφ' ὅσον. οὐ πάντων μέν, ὅτι τῶν ἐξητασμένων καὶ διαβεβηκότων ἐν θεωρίᾳ, καὶ πρὸ τούτων καὶ ψυχὴν καὶ σῶμα κεκαθαρμένων, ἢ καθαιρομένων, τὸ μεριώτατον. Μὴ καθαρῷ γὰρ ἅπτεσθαι καθαροῦ τυχὸν οὐδὲ ἀσφαλές, ὥσπερ οὐδὲ ὄψει σαθρᾷ ἡλιακῆς ἀκτῖνος. Ὄτε δέ; ἡνίκα ἂν σχολὴν ἄγωμεν ἀπὸ τῆς ἔξωθεν ἰλύος καὶ ταραχῆς, καὶ μὴ τὸ ἡγεμονικὸν ἡμῶν συγχέηται τοῖς μοχθηροῖς τύποις καὶ πλανωμένοις, οἷον γράμμασι πονηροῖς ἀναμιγνύντων κάλλη γραμμάτων, ἢ βορβόρῳ μύρων εὐωδίαν. Δεῖ γὰρ τῷ ὄντι σχολάσαι, καὶ γνῶναι θεόν· καὶ ὅταν λάβωμεν καιρόν, κρίνειν θεολογίας εὐθύτητα. Ἅγιος Γρηγόριος ὁ Ναζιανζηνός, Λόγος ΚΖ' Κατὰ Εὐνομιανῶν Προδιάλεξις Source: Migne PG 36.13c-16a

Not to every one, my friends, does it belong to philosophize about God, not to every one; the matter is not so cheap and common; and I shall add, should not be done at all times, nor before everyone, nor on all points, but at certain times, and before certain persons, and on certain points. It is not for all because it is permitted only to those who who have passed through contemplation, those who have been purified in soul and body, or at least are being purified. For the impure to touch the pure is, we may safely say, not safe, just as it is unsafe to fix weak eyes on the rays of the sun. And when should we? We may when we are free from all external defilement or disturbance, and when that which rules within us is not confused with depraved or erring images, for then we are like those who mix good and bad writing, or filth with the sweet smelling ointments. For it is necessary to be truly at leisure to know God, and when we have a convenient season to discern the straight road of things Divine. Saint Gregory Nazianzus, from Oration 27

Leisure and Truth

Μή γένοιτο οὖν ἡμᾶς σχολὴν ποιῆσαι τῷ ἀντικειμένῳ πρὸς τὴν εἴσοδον, ἀλλὰ ἀσχολήσωμεν ἡμῶν τὸν ἔσω οἶκον, προενοικίσαντες ἐν ἑαυτοῖς διὰ τοῦ Πνεύματος τὸν Χριστόν. Μετὰ γοῦν τὸ χαρίσασθαι τὴν εἰρήνην τοῖς τέως ταρασσομένοις ὑπὸ τῶν πολεμίων, τότε λέγει τὸ, Σκολάσατε ἀπὸ τῶν περισπώντων ὑμᾶς ἐχθρῶν, ἵνα ἐν ἡσυχίᾳ τοὺς περὶ τῆς ἀληθείας θεωρήσητε λόγους. Διὰ τοῦτο καὶ ὁ Κύριος, Πᾶς ὅστις οὐκ ἀποτάσσεται, φησὶ, πᾰσι τοῖς ὑπάρχουσιν, οὐ δύναταί μου εἶναι μαθητής. Σκολάσαι οὖν δεῖ ἀπὸ τῶν γαμικῶν ἔργων, ἵνα σχολάσωμεν τῇ προσευχῇ· σχολάσαι ἀπὸ τῶν περὶ τὸν πλοῦτον σπουδῶν, ἀπὸ τῆς περὶ τὸ δοξάριον τοῦτο ἐπιθυμίας, ἀπὸ τῶν πρὸς ἀπολαυσιν ἡδονῶν, ἀπὸ φθόνου καὶ πάσης τῆς εἰς τὸν πλησίον ἡμῶν πονηρίας, ἵνα, γαληνιωσης ἡμῶν τῆς ψυχῆς καὶ ὑπ' οὐδενὸς πάθους ταρασσομένης, οἷον ἐν  κατόπτρῳ τινὶ καθαρὰ γένηται καὶ ἀνεπισκότητος ἡ ἔλλαμψις τοῦ Θεοῦ. Ἅγιος Βασίλειος ὁ Μέγας, Ὁμιλία Ἐις Τους Ψαλμούς, Εἰς Τον ΜΕ' Ψαλμον

May it not be on account of leisure that we make a way of entry for the enemy, but let us be occupied with holding our interior dwelling for Christ whom we receive through the Holy Spirit. After which He gives rest to those who have been troubled by enemies and says, 'Be at leisure from the distractions of your enemies that in quiet you are able to contemplate the word of truth.' Whence even the Lord says, 'Everyone who does not renounce everything he possess is not able to be my disciple.' 1 Let us therefore be at leisure from works of marriage that we have leisure for prayer, let us be at leisure from the desire for wealth, from the longing for glory, from the use of pleasure, from envy and all malignity against our neighbour, that obtaining tranquility for our soul and being untroubled by any movement of passion, there comes to be, as in some clear mirror, the flash of the unobscured God. Saint Basil of Caesarea, Homilies on the Psalms, from Psalm 45 1 Lk  14.33

Philosophy And Retirement

Φιλοσοφοῦμεν ἐφ' ἠσυχίας· τοῦτο οἱ μισοῦντες ἡμᾶς ἠδίκησαν, ὡς εἴθε τι καὶ ἄλλο τοιοῦτον, ἳνα μᾶλλον εύεργέτας αὐτοὺς γινώσκωμεν. Πολλὰ γάρ ἐστι καὶ ἀδικουμένους εὖ πάσχειν, καὶ καλῶς πάσχοντας ἀδικεῖσθαι. Τὰ μὲν οὖν ἠμέτερα τοιαῦτα. Καὶ εἰ μὴ τοὺς ἄλλους πείθομεν, αὐτόν γέ σε ἀντὶ πάντων εἰδέναι βουλόμεθα, ᾦ λόγον ὑπέχομεν ἡδέως τῶν ἡμετέρων, μᾶλλον δὲ, εἰδέναι πεπείσμεθα, καὶ πείθειν τοὺς ἀγνοοῦντας. Ὑμῖν δὲ, παρακαλῶ, πᾶσα σπουδὴ γενέσθω νῦν γοῦν, εἰ καὶ μὴ πρότερον, συμφωνῆσαι καὶ εἰς ἔν ἐλθεῖν τὰ τῆς οἰκουμένης τμήματα κακῶς διεστῶτα, καὶ μάλιστα, εἰ λάβοιτε αὐτοὺς οὐχ ὑπὲρ τοῦ χιῶν διεστῶτας, ὅπερ ἐγω τετήρηκα. Τοῦτο καὶ ὑμῖν ἔμμισθον, ἄν εἴη τὸ δύνασθαι· καὶ ἡμῖν ἠ ἀναχώρησις ἀλυποτέρα, εἰ φανείημεν μὴ κενῶς ταύτην ἀρπάσαντες, ἀλλ' ἐκοντὶ ῥίψαντες ἡμᾶς αὐτοὺς κατὰ πελάγους, ὥσπερ ὁ Ἰωνᾶς ἐκεῖνος ἵν' ὁ κλύδων παύσηται, καὶ σωθῶσιν ἀσφαλῶς οἱ ἐμπλέοντες. Εί δὲ οὐδὲν ἥττον χειμάζονται, τόγε ἡμέτερον εἰσενήνεκται. Ἅγιος Γρηγόριος ὁ Ναζιανζηνός, Ἐπιστολή Σωφρονιῳ Ὑπαρχῳ

We are philosophizing at leisure. That is the harm those who hate us have inflicted on us, and if they would do more of the same, we would know them still more as benefactors. For it often happens that it goes well with those who are treated unjustly, while those who are treated well suffer injustices. That then is how things are with us. But if I cannot persuade others, I wish that you above all others, to whom I gladly give an account of my affairs, should know this, or rather I am persuaded that you do know it, and can persuade those who do not. But I beg you to give all diligence now, if you have not done so before, to bring together the woefully divided sections of the world, above all if you should understand, as I noted, that they are divided because of  petty interests. This would gain you reward, if you are able to accomplish it, and my retirement would have less to lament if I could see that I did not take to it in vain, but had willingly cast myself into the sea like Jonah that the storm might cease and sailors be saved. If, however, they do no better in the storm, I have done what I could. Saint Gregory Nazianzus, from a Letter to To the Prefect Sophronius

God And Leisure

Σκολάσατε καὶ γνῶτε, ὅτι ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ Θεος. Ἐφ' ὅσον μὲν τοις ἔξω Θεοῦ σχολάζομεν πράγμασιν, οὐ δυνάμεθα χωρῆσαι γνῶσιν Θεοῦ. Τίς γὰρ μεριμνῶν τὰ τοῦ κόσμου, καὶ ἐμβαθύνων τοῖς περισπασμοῖς τῆς σαρκὸς, δύναται τοῖς περὶ Θεοῦ λόγοις προσέχειν, καὶ τῇ ἀκριβείᾳ τῶν τηλικούτων θεωρημάτων ἀρκεῖν; Οὐκ ὀρᾷς ὅτι ὁ εἰς τὰς ἀκάνθας ἐμπεσὼν λόγος ὑπὸ τῶν ἀκανθῶν συμπνίγεται; Ἄκανθαι δέ εἰσιν ἡδοναὶ σαρκὰς, καὶ πλοῦτος καὶ δοξα, καὶ βιωτικαὶ μέριμναι. Πάντα δὲ τούτων ἔξω δεήσει γενέσθαι τὸν ἐπιδεόμενον τῆς γνώσεως τοῦ Θεοῦ, καὶ σχολάσαντα ἀπὸ τῶν παθῶν, οὕτως ἀναλαβεῖν τὴν ἐπίγνωσιν τοῦ Θεοῦ. Πῶς γὰρ εἰσέλθῃ εἰς ψυχὺν στενοχωρουμένην ὑπὸ τῶν προκαταλαβόντων αὐτὴν διαλογισμῶν ἡ περὶ Θεοῦ ἔννοια; Οἶδε δὲ καὶ Φαραὼ, ὅτι ἴδιόν ἐστι τοῦ σχολάζοντος ἐκζητεῖν τὸν Θεὸν, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ὀνειδίζει τὸν Ἰσραήλ· Σκολάζετε, σχολασταί ἐστε, καὶ λέγετε· Κυρίῳ τῷ Θεῷ ἡμῶν προσευξόμεθα. Αὔτη μὲν οὖν ἡ σχολὴ ἀγαθὴ τῷ σχολάζοντι καὶ ὠφέλιμος, ἠσυχίαν ἐμποιοῦσα πρὸς τὴν τῶν σωτηρίων διδαγμάτων ἀνάληψιν· πονηρὰ δὲ σχολὴ ἡ τῶν Ἀθηναίων, οἶς Εἰς οὐδὲν ἄλλο εὐκαίρουν ἢ λέγειν τι καὶ ἀκούειν καινότερον· ἤν καὶ νῦν τινες μιμοῦνται, τῇ τοῦ βίου σχολῇ πρὸς τὴν ἀεί τινος καινοτέρου δόγμα. τος εὕρεσιν ἀποχρώμενοι. Ἡ τοιαύτη σχολὴ φίλη ἐστὶν ἀκαθάρτοις καὶ πονηροῖς πνεύμασιν. Ὅταν ἐξέλθῃ, φησὶ, τὸ ἀκάθαρτον πνεῦμα ἀπὸ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου, λέγει, Πορεύσομαι εἰς τὸν τόπον ὅθεν ἐξῆλθον. Καὶ ἐλθὸν εὑρίσκει τὸν οἶκον ἐκεῖνον σχολάζοντα καὶ σεσαρωμένον. Μὴ γένοιτο οὖν ἡμᾶς σχολὴν ποιῆσαι τῷ ἀντικειμένῳ πρὸς τὴν εἴσοδον, ἀλλὰ ἀσχολήσωμεν ἡμῶν τὸν ἔσω οἶκον, προενοικίσαντες ἐν ἑαυτοῖς διὰ τοῦ Πνεύματος τὸν Χριστόν. Μετὰ οῦν τὸ χαρίσασθαι τὴν εἰρήνην τοῖς τέως ταρασομένοις ὐπὸ τῶν περισπώντων ὑμᾶς ἐχθρῶν, ἵνα ἐν ἡσυχίᾳ τοὺς περὶ τῆς ἀληθείας θεωρήσητε λόγους. Διὰ τοῦτο καὶ ὁ Κύριος, Πᾶς ὅστις οὐκ ἀποτάσσεται, φησὶ πᾶσι τοῖς ὑπάρχουσιν, οὐ δύναταί μου εἶναι μαθητής. Ἅγιος Βασίλειος ὁ Μέγας, Ὁμιλία Ἐις Τους Ψαλμούς, Ψαλμός ΜΕ' Source: Migne PG 29.428c-429b

Be free and see that I am God. 1 That is, we should free ourselves from things alien to God, for else we shall not be able to obtain knowledge of God. Who in his care for things of the world and immersed in corporeal affairs is able to attend to the words of God, and carefully and diligently ponder the ageless Divine words? Do you not see that the word has fallen among thorns that choke it? 2 And the thorns are excessive care for corporeal pleasures and wealth and fame and glory. Apart from all things foreign one should be, desiring knowledge of God, and when one is free from such passions thus is gained the knowledge of God. How indeed does the soul come into confinement by such preoccupations of the mind impeding the entrance of the knowledge of God? Even Pharaoh knew that leisure is required to seek God, and this was the cause of him railing against Israel: 'You are at leisure, you are lazy, and you say 'We must make a vow to the Lord.' 3 And this is the good and beneficial leisure, that quiet which brings one to the gain of salutary teachings. However, the leisure of the Athenians is bad, those who did nothing with their leisure unless to speak and to hear something new, which even now not a few imitate, those who in their leisure hours must always be fashioning some new teaching. Such leisure is a friend of an unclean and depraved spirit. For 'When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he says, 'I shall return to the place whence I came,' and coming he discovers his house empty and swept clean.' 4 May it not be that by use of leisure we are attacked at the entrance; but rather let our house be occupied with the foreknowledge of Christ through the Spirit. After then there will be peace to those who have been troubled by enemies and so in quiet they will contemplate the words of truth. So the Lord says, 'Everyone who does not renounce everything which he has, he cannot be my disciple.' 5 Saint Basil of Caesarea, Homilies on the Psalms, from Psalm 45 1 Ps 45.11 2 Mt 13.7 3 Exod 5.17 4 Mt 12.43-44 5 Lk 14.33

Thoughts on Service

Vos autem, fratres, exhortamur in Domino ut propositum vestrum custodiatis, et usque in finem perseveretis: ac si qua opera vestra mater Ecclesia desideraverit, nec elatione avida suscipiatis, nec blandiente desidia respuatis; sed miti corde obtemperetis Deo, cum mansuetudine portantes eum qui vos regit, qui dirigit mites in iudicio, qui docet mansuetos vias suas . Nec vestrum otium necessitatibus Ecclesiae praeponatis, cui parturienti si nulli boni ministrare vellent, quomodo nasceremini, non inveniretis. Sicut autem inter ignem et aquam tenenda est via, ut nec exuratur homo nec demergatur; sic inter apicem superbiae et voraginem desidiae iter nostrum temperare debemus, sicut scriptum est: Non declinantes, neque ad dexteram, neque ad sinistram. Sunt enim qui dum nimis timent ne quasi in dexteram rapti extollantur, in sinistram lapsi demerguntur. Et sunt rursus qui dum nimis se auferunt a sinistra, ne torpida vacationis mollitie sorbeantur, ex altera parte iactantiae fastu corrupti atque consumpti, in favillam fumumque vanescunt. Sic ergo, dilectissimi, diligite otium, ut vos ab omni terrena delectatione refrenetis, et memineritis nullum locum esse, ubi non possit laqueos tendere qui timet ne revolemus ad Deum; et inimicum omnium bonorum, cuius captivi fuimus, iudicemus, nullamque nobis esse perfectam requiem cogitemus, donec transeat iniquitas, et in iudicium iustitia convertatur  Sanctus Augustinus Hipponensis, ex Epistola Abbati Eudoxio et Fratribus

We exhort you in the Lord, brethren, that you watch over your purpose, and persevere to the end, and if the Church, your Mother, desires your service, that you are neither taken up by excessive elation nor you refuse out of the attraction of indolence, but with gentle heart obey God, bearing him with gentleness who rules you, who teaches you the way of meekness. Do not choose your own leisure to the demands of the Church, for if no one wished to help in bringing forth the good how it would be born we do not know. As between fire and water hold to the way, that you are neither burnt nor drowned, so between the peak of pride and the chasm of laziness we should try to make our path; as it is written: 'Declining neither to the right nor the left.'  There are some who excessively fearing that by elevation they will be snatched by the right side fall to the left and are submerged. And again they are those who excessively shying away from the left side, lest they be absorbed in in the torpid softness of ease, are thrown to the other side and are corrupted and consumed by conceit, in the dust of that smoke vanishing. Therefore, beloved, hold dear leisure that you refrain from every worldly pleasure and remember that there is no place where he who fears we would fly to God does not set traps. Let us be aware of that enemy of all good, whose captives we were, and let us think none of us to be in perfect peace until iniquity has passed away. Saint Augustine of Hippo, from the Letter to the Abbot Eudoxus and the brothers with him.