This is what prevents unbelievers from becoming Christians! Let us convert them with our lives. Many and unlearned people have amazed the minds of philosophers, showing wisdom in deeds and speaking louder than a trumpet by behavior and wisdom: this is stronger than words. If, for example, I assert that evil should not be remembered, and yet I inflict many evils on a heathen, how can I attract him with words, when I drive him away with deeds? And so, let us entrap them with life, build up the Church from their souls, and gather such wealth. Nothing can compare to the soul, not even the whole world. Though you distribute innumerable riches to the poor, you will not do as much as he who converts one soul. "If you extract the precious from the insignificant, you will be like My mouth," says the Lord (Jeremiah 15:19). It is a great blessing to have mercy on the poor; but not such as to deliver someone from error; whoever does this is like Peter and Paul. Truly, we can also participate in their preaching, not by experiencing dangers, hunger, torments, and other calamities like them — now is a time of peace — but by showing zealous zeal for this. You can also do this fishing while sitting at home. Whoever has a friend, a relative, or a household, let him do this to them, let him tell them this, and he will be like Peter and Paul. What am I saying to Peter and Paul? It will be the mouth of Christ: "If you extract the precious from the insignificant, you will be like My mouth," says the Lord. If you do not convince today, you will convince tomorrow: if you never convince, you will receive a full reward; if you do not convince everyone, then perhaps out of many, some; for the apostles did not convince all men, but stretched out their word to all, and received a reward for all. God usually appoints crowns, looking not at the end of podvigs, but at the disposition of those who struggle. If you bring only two mites, He will accept; as He did to the widow (Luke 21:2-4), so He does to those who teach the doctrine. Therefore, because you cannot save the whole universe, do not despise the few, and when you strive for the great, do not deprive yourself of the small. If you can't convert a hundred people, try to convert ten; if you cannot do ten, do not despise five; if you cannot do even five, do not despise one; if you can't do just one, then don't lose heart, and don't give up doing what you can. Do you not see how in trade those who are engaged in it make transactions not only in gold, but also in silver? If we do not neglect the little, we will also receive much; but if we neglect the little, then it is not easy to obtain much. They become rich by gathering both small and much; so let us also act, so that, having been enriched in all things, you may be vouchsafed the kingdom of heaven, through the grace and love of mankind of our Lord Jesus Christ, with Whom to the Father, with the Holy Spirit, be glory, dominion, and honor, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

CONVERSATION 4

"For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and I will reject the understanding of the prudent. Where is the sage? Where is the scribe? Where is the questioner of this world? Has not God turned the wisdom of this world into madness?" (1 Cor. 1:18-20).

Objects of faith are higher than the judgments of reason. — Actions of Christ performed in ways contrary to actions. "Socrates was forced to drink the poison from the hemlock. — The Sufferings of the Martyrs. — Protagoras, Diagoras and Theodore the Atheist. "In relation to the pagans, indulgence is necessary, as to children.

1. Healthy food is also unpleasant for the suffering and dying, friends and relatives are unpleasant, whom they often do not recognize and are even burdened by their presence. This is usually the case with those who suffer spiritually: they do not know what is needed for salvation, and they are burdened by those who care for them. This does not come from the nature of the work itself (salvation), but from their illness. Just as those who are mad in their minds do not tolerate those who care for them, and even condemn them, so do the unbelievers. But just as these offended are all the more sorry and weeping for the sick, considering their illness to be an extreme degree, when they do not recognize those closest to them, so let us also act in relation to the pagans and weep for them more than for our wives, because they do not know the salvation common to all. It is not so much that a husband should love his wife, but we should love all people and lead them to salvation, whether they be pagans or whoever. Let us weep for them, for the fact that the word about the cross, which is wisdom and power, is foolishness to them. "For the word of the cross," says (Paul), "there is foolishness for those who are perishing." Since the cross was ridiculed by the pagans, they probably called the teaching about it contrary to their wisdom and inconsistent with their teaching; wherefore Paul, admonishing him, says: Do not consider him strange and absurd; This work by its nature is such that those who are perishing cannot comprehend its power, since they have lost their minds and have fallen into madness. That is why they revile and hate salvific medicines. What do you say, man? Christ became a slave, taking the form of a slave for you, was crucified and resurrected; you should bow down to the Resurrected One and marvel at His love for mankind, since everything that neither father, nor friend, nor son did for you, He did for you, His enemy and offender; He should be amazed at this; and you call madness a work full of such wisdom! But no wonder; It is characteristic of those who are lost not to know that which leads to salvation.

Therefore, do not be dismayed; There is nothing strange or unexpected in the fact that madmen laugh at great objects. Such people cannot be convinced by human wisdom; and if you try to persuade them in this way, you will do the opposite; For that which surpasses reason, faith alone is needed. Truly, if we want to explain (to the Gentiles) by means of the judgments of reason how God became man by entering the womb of the Virgin, and do not recognize this as an article of faith, they will only laugh. Those who wish to comprehend this by means of the judgments of reason perish. And what do I say about God? If we do the same in relation to created things, then we will cause great laughter. For instance, let a man who wishes to be convinced of all things by the judgments of reason require you to explain to him how we see the light? And you try to explain it to him by means of the judgments of reason. But you couldn't do it. If you were to say that it is enough to open your eyes to see, you would explain the way of seeing, and not the matter itself.

Let us leave this to the power and boundless wisdom of God, and let us be silent. In the same way, if we wish to explain divine objects with the help of external wisdom, then great laughter will follow, not because of the nature of the objects themselves, but because of the foolishness of man. After all, no word can express great things. See, if I say, Christ was crucified, the heathen will object, "Is this in accordance with reason?" He did not deliver Himself when they crucified and tortured Him on the cross: how then did He rise again and deliver others? If he had the power to do so, he had to show it before death (so indeed the Jews said); but if He did not deliver Himself, how could He deliver others? This, he will say, is inconsistent with reason. And for sure, this is beyond reason; In the cross appeared an ineffable power. To be tormented and to be above torment, to be bound and conquered, is the work of infinite power. How the three youths, being cast into the furnace and trampling down the flame, appeared more wondrous than if they had not been cast into it; and as Jonah, being swallowed up by a whale and suffering no harm from it, became greater than when he had not been exposed to such danger, so Jesus Christ, having died and abolished death, appeared more glorious than when He had not died. Do not say, therefore, why did He not redeem Himself on the cross? He wanted to fight death. He did not come down from the cross, not because he could not, but because he did not want to. After all, if the power of death could not hold Him, then how could the nails of the cross hold Him?

2. However, this is known to us, but not to the infidels. That is why the Apostle said: "For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and I will reject the understanding of the prudent." Hitherto He has said nothing accusatory; and now, bringing before the testimony of the Scriptures and borrowing boldness from them, he begins a rebuke and says: "Has not God turned the wisdom of this world into foolishness? Where is the sage? Where is the scribe? Where is the questioner of this world? For when the world by wisdom did not know God in the wisdom of God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save those who believe" (vv. 20-21). Having said, "It is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise," he adds proof of this from works, and says, "Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe?" In fact, which of the philosophers, who is skillful in judgment, or who of those who know Judaism has granted salvation and taught the truth? No one, but everything was done by the fishermen. Having proved this point, and put to shame their vanity, saying, "Has not God turned the wisdom of this world into foolishness?" he gives the reason why this was so. "For when," he says, "the world in wisdom did not know God in the wisdom of God," then the cross appeared. What does it mean: "in the wisdom of God"? In the creatures through which He was pleased to reveal Himself. He arranged everything in such a way that man, passing from visible objects to the Creator, would be amazed at Him. Great is the heavens, and boundless is the earth: marvel at their Maker. For this great heaven was not only created by Him, but also easily created, and this boundless earth was produced by Him as nothing. That is why it is said of the former: "The heavens are the work of Thy hands" (Psalm 101:26); and of the earth: "And the earth he created as nothing" (Isaiah 40:23). Since the world did not want to know God by means of this wisdom, He taught preaching, not through judgment, but through faith. Where there is the wisdom of God, there is no need for human wisdom. To say that he who created so beautiful and so great a world is God, who has boundless and ineffable power, was to judge by human wisdom and to comprehend Him by means of them; But now what is needed is not judgment, but faith alone. In order to accept and be convinced that the Crucified and Buried One has risen and is sitting on the mountain, this requires not judgment, but faith. The Apostles did not go with wisdom, but with faith, and appeared wiser and higher than external sages, and all the more so than the acceptance of divine things by faith is higher than reasoning, since this surpasses human reason. How did he destroy wisdom? He revealed himself to us through Paul and similar men, and showed that it was useless. Neither wisdom helps the wise in the least to receive the Gospel preaching, nor ignorance in the least hinders the unlearned, and even, surprisingly, it must be said, ignorance can accept it much more quickly and easily than wisdom. The shepherd and the farmer, not carried away by reasoning and surrendering themselves to the Lord, will accept it more quickly. Thus He destroyed this wisdom! Since she herself had previously shamed herself, she then became good for nothing. When she had to show herself and know the Lord by His works, she did not want to; but now, even though she wanted to contribute to this, she cannot, because now this is not the state of affairs — there is a path to the knowledge of God that is much better than her. What is needed now is simple faith; it must be sought everywhere and preferred to outward wisdom: "God has turned it into madness," says he, "wisdom." What does it mean: "turned to madness"? He showed that it is unreasonable to accept the faith. Since people thought highly of her, He directly rebuked her. What kind of wisdom is it if it cannot find the main good? He denounced her folly, because she had exposed herself beforehand. If it did not discover anything when it was possible to investigate by means of judgments, then what success can be expected from it now, when higher subjects are before us, when faith alone is needed, and not the art of judgment? Thus God showed her folly; And He deigned to save by the folly of preaching, which, however, is not real, but apparent. This is especially important because He surpassed it not by some other wisdom that is higher than it, but by seeming ignorance. He deposed Plato, not by some wiser philosopher, but by an unlearned fisherman. Such a defeat is stronger; Such a victory is more brilliant. Expressing the power of the cross, Paul goes on to say: "For the Jews also demand miracles, and the Greeks seek wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to the Jews, and foolishness to the Greeks, but to those who are called, Jews and Greeks, Christ, the power of God, and the wisdom of God" (1 Corinthians 1:22-24).

3. Great wisdom in these words. He wants to show how God has conquered by not promising victory, and how preaching is not the work of man. His words mean the following: when we say to the Jews, "Believe," they object: "Raise up the dead, heal those who are possessed, show us signs." What do we say instead? We say that He who we preach was crucified and died. Not only can this not attract those who resist, but it can drive away those who do not resist; however, it does not drive away, but attracts, restrains and subdues. Again, the pagans demand of us eloquence in words and art in judgment, and we preach the cross to them too. To the Jews this seems powerlessness, and to the Gentiles it seems madness. But if we offer them not only not what they demand, but also the contrary to it, and the cross, according to the judgment of reason, is not only not a sign, but something contrary to the sign, not only not a sign of power, but a sign of impotence, not only not an expression of wisdom, but a proof of foolishness, if those who demand signs and wisdom not only do not receive what is required, but they still hear from us that which is contrary to what is demanded, and yet they are convinced by this contrary, that this is not the work of the ineffable power of Him who is preached?

If, for example, you were to show some of those who are tossed about by the waves and seek a haven, not a harbor, but another place in the sea, which is still more dangerous, and yet persuade him to sail thither with gratitude, or if the physician did not approach the wounded man and was waiting for medicine with medicine, but promised to heal him by burning, and yet persuaded him, then it would be a work of great power; so the apostles conquered not only not by signs, but by that which is apparently contrary to signs. This is what Christ did with the blind man: wishing to grant him healing, He destroyed blindness by producing blindness: "He laid down the clay" (John 9:15). As He healed the blind man with mortality, so He drew the universe to Himself with the cross, which increased the temptation, and did not destroy it. Thus He did also at creation, arranging the contrary to the opposite; He fenced the sea with sand, bridling the strong with the weak; He hung the earth on the water, establishing the heavy and dense on the liquid and the flowing. Through the prophets, He again caused iron to float out of the water by means of a small tree (2 Kings 6:6). In the same way He restored the universe by means of the cross. As water holds the earth, so the cross holds the universe. Thus, to persuade the contrary is a sign of great power and wisdom. The cross apparently produces temptation, and yet it not only does not seduce, but attracts. Imagining all this and wondering, Paul says: "For the foolish things of God are wiser than men, and the weakness of God are stronger than men" (1 Corinthians 1:25). Speaking of the violence and weakness of the cross, he does not mean that it is really so, but seems to be so: it speaks in relation to the opinion of the opponents. What philosophers could not do by reasoning was done by seeming madness. Who is wiser? Is it the one who convinces the many, or the one who convinces the few, or rather, no one? Is it the one who convinces in matters of the most important, or who in matters of little importance? How much Plato labored with his followers on a line, an angle, and a point, on numbers commensurable and incommensurable, equal and unequal, and having told us about these cobwebs — for all this is more useless for life than even a spider's web — and having brought no benefit either large or small, then he ended his life. How much he tried to prove that the soul is immortal, but without saying anything clear and without convincing any of his listeners, he then died. On the contrary, the cross, through the unlearned, convinced and converted the whole universe, convinced not of unimportant matters, but of the doctrine of God, true piety, the life of the Gospel, and the future judgment; He made everyone a philosopher – farmers, non-scientists. You see how "the foolish things of God are wiser, and the weak things of God are stronger than men." How stronger? By spreading throughout the whole world, it subdued everyone to its power, and while an innumerable multitude of people tried to destroy the name of the Crucified One, it did the opposite. This name was glorified and grew more and more, and they perished and disappeared; the living, rebelling against the One who was put to death, could do nothing. Therefore, if a heathen calls me a fool, he will reveal his own extreme madness, since, being considered mad by him, I turn out to be wiser than the wise; if he calls me impotent, he will reveal his own even greater impotence, since what the publicans and fishermen have done by the grace of God, philosophers, rhetoricians, rulers, and the whole universe, in general, with innumerable efforts, could not even imagine. What did the cross not do? He introduced the doctrine of the immortality of the soul, of the resurrection of bodies, of the contempt for the goods of the present and the striving for the goods of the future; He made men angels; to him everyone and everywhere became wise and capable of every virtue.

4. But among them, you will say, many despised death. Who, then, tell me? Is it the one who drank the poison from the hemlock? But I will present thousands like him in our Church, if you will: if it had been allowed to die in the time of persecution, having taken poison, then all (the persecuted) would have appeared more glorious than he. Moreover, he drank the poison, not having the power to drink or not to drink; whether he wanted it or not, he had to undergo it, and consequently it was not a matter of courage, but of necessity; Both robbers and murderers, according to the sentence of the judges, suffered even greater sufferings. But with us everything is the opposite: the martyrs did not suffer against their will, but of their own free will, and while they had the power not to undergo suffering, they showed courage stronger than any adamant. It is not surprising that he drank poison when he could not help drinking, and moreover, when he reached a very old age. He said that he was already seventy years old when he was ready to despise life, if it could be called contempt for life, which I would not say, and certainly no one else would say. And you point out to me someone who would suffer for his piety, as I can point out to you an innumerable number everywhere in the world. Who bravely endured when his nails were pulled out? Who — when the members were torn apart? Who – when they tore his body to pieces? Who – when did they pull the bones out of the head? Who - when they constantly put it on a hot frying pan? Who - when they threw it into boiling water? Show me this! And to die of hemlock poison is almost the same as to fall asleep peacefully; even such a death, they say, is more pleasant than sleep. But if some have really suffered torments, they are not worthy of praise for this, because the cause of their sufferings was shameful: some suffered because they had revealed some secret, others because they had abused their power, some because they had been caught in the most shameful crimes, and some without any reason, in vain and recklessly, took their own lives. But this is absolutely not the case with us. For this reason their deeds are forgotten, and ours are glorified and increase every day. Presenting all this, Paul said, "The weakness of God is stronger than all men."

What does he say about them? That when Christ was taken, in spite of His innumerable miracles, some of them fled, but the chief of them who remained denied (Mark 14:50, 68). Why did those who, during Christ's lifetime, could not bear the attacks of the Jews, after His death and burial, decide to go against the whole world, if, as you say, He did not rise, did not converse with them, and did not strengthen them? Could they not say to themselves, What is this? He could not save Himself—how can He deliver us? He could not avenge Himself during His lifetime—how can He give us a helping hand after His death? He did not subdue a single nation during His lifetime—how can we convince the whole world by declaring His name? Isn't it strange not only to do this, but even to think about it? From this it is clear that if they had not seen Him resurrected and had not received the greatest proofs of His power, they would not have dared to undertake such a dangerous deed. If they had had an innumerable number of friends, would they not have turned them all into enemies, changing the ancient customs and abolishing the laws of the fathers? But everyone was hostile to them, both their own and others. If they were distinguished by all the outward advantages, would they not have aroused universal enmity against themselves by introducing a new way of life? Yet they had nothing, and it was therefore natural that they were hated and despised by all. Who should I point you to? Is it against the Jews? They had an unspeakable hatred for them for their Master. Is it against the Gentiles? And these no less abhorred them, as the pagans themselves know better. Plato, who wished to introduce a new civil government, or rather a part of the government, and not touching the gods, but only changing some customs for others, was in danger of dying an exile in Sicily; although this did not happen, he was nevertheless deprived of his liberty; and if there had not been another foreigner kinder than the ruler of Sicily, this philosopher would certainly have remained forever a slave in a foreign country. Meanwhile, innovations in civil matters are not yet so dangerous as in matters of faith; the latter especially irritate people and confuse them. To say that so-and-so should marry so-and-so, or that the guards should guard so-and-so, cannot cause much confusion, especially if such ordinances remain in the book, and the legislator does not care much to put them into effect. But to say that the gods worshipped are not gods, but demons, that the true God is the Crucified One, this, you know, is what kindled anger, what kind of revenge it aroused, what kind of warfare it caused.

5. Protagoras among them (the pagans), who dared to say, "I know no gods," and moreover, not in the ears of the whole universe, through which he would have walked and preached, but in one city, was exposed to extreme danger. Diagoras of Melia and Theodore (of Cyrene), called the atheist, although they had friends, were famous for their eloquence and amazed with their philosophy, but in nothing did they find salvation for themselves. The great Socrates, who surpassed all of them in his philosophy, drank poison because he was suspected of some innovations regarding the gods. And if the mere suspicion of an innovation exposed the philosophers and sages, who were held in great esteem, to such danger, and they not only failed to carry out their intentions, but themselves lost their lives and their country, how can we not be surprised and amazed to see that the fishermen have done such great deeds in the universe, have done what they have undertaken, and have conquered all, both barbarians and Greeks? But they, you will say, did not introduce new gods, like those (philosophers). It is very strange to say this; they introduced a twofold novelty: they rejected the gods of that time and preached the Crucified One. How did they dare to preach this? How did you hope to achieve your goal? Have they seen anyone do anything before them–