To this the young man said: "In vain, woman, you have addressed me with such an unsuitable request; although I am very anxious for your salvation and for distracting you from the fatal abyss, it is difficult and absolutely impossible for me to defile my body through carnal union."

But the girl already had objections ready for everything. Therefore she said to him: "Why do you, my lord, being wise, say such things to me? Why do you consider such a union to be a defilement for yourself? I, too, am somewhat versed in Christian books, and have heard from Christians whom I have seen in my own country, that many of you are united by the bonds of marriage. One of your books says the same: "Let marriage be honorable among all, and the bed blameless" (Hebrews 13:4). And in another place: It is better to marry than to be inflamed (1 Corinthians 7:9). And again: "What God hath joined together, let not man put asunder" (Matt. 19:6). Did not all the ancient patriarchs, prophets, and righteous men marry? And that Peter, whom you call the supreme Apostle, did not have a wife? By whose suggestion do you call marriage a defilement? It seems to me that you are far from understanding the true teaching of your faith!"

"Everything that you say is perfectly true," answered Joasaph, "but since he who has made a vow to Christ not to marry, he cannot break this vow. At the time of receiving Holy Baptism, when I was forsaken the sins of my youth, I made a vow to appear pure before Christ. How can I break it?"

"Let it be your way," answered the maiden, "so grant at least this little request of mine, if you wish to save my soul, spend only this night with me, let me enjoy your beauty, and, for your part, enjoy my beauty, and I give you my word to become a Christian at dawn, and to avoid serving my gods with all your might; for this conversion of me to Christianity, you will not only be forgiven the fulfillment of my desire, but will also be rewarded by God for my salvation, for in heaven there will be more joy over one repentant sinner than in ninety-nine righteous men (Luke 15:7).

If in heaven they rejoice at the conversion of a sinner, will there not be a great reward for the author of this conversion? Did not the Apostles, the preachers of your faith, transgress some commandment for the sake of fulfilling another, greater commandment? Is it not said that the apostle Paul circumcised Timothy for another great cause? Does this circumcision seem to you a crime for a Christian? And you will find many more similar examples in your Scriptures. Therefore, if you truly want to save my soul, then fulfill this insignificant request. At first I wished to be united with you in a lawful marriage, but since this is not to your liking, I no longer insist on it, trying to do everything pleasing to you. Do not disdain me completely, listen to me for the first and last time: by this you will free me from my error, and you yourself will fulfill everything prescribed by the dogmas of your faith for the rest of your life."

Thus the girl spoke, at the instruction of the evil spirit, which was pleasing to him, for this creator and teacher of evil was versed in the Holy Scriptures. Scripture. Speaking and caressing, entangling Joasaph in her nets and luring him into the intrigues that had been set, she had already begun to shake the firmness of his soul, to untie the strong knots of his will. But the sower of evil and the enemy of the righteous, seeing his hesitation, was filled with the greatest joy and immediately summoned the evil spirits that had come with him, shouting to them: "See how this maiden successfully does what even we could not do. Let us attack it now, for we will not find another more convenient opportunity to fulfill the will of Him who sent us." As soon as the evil one says this to his dogs, they immediately rush at the soldier of Christ, throw all his spiritual feelings into confusion, put into him a strong love for the maiden, kindle a passionate fire in him. Joasaph, experiencing this terrible fire, seeing his enslavement to a sinful feeling, and, at the same time, thinking that all this would be only a means for the salvation of the maiden, for her conversion to God, and his adultery with her, which occurred for the salvation of her soul, would not be considered a sin, nevertheless felt that here was hidden a hook surrounded by the bait of the enemy. In the struggle of these opposite feelings, in helplessness and indecision as to what to do, he resorts to prayer and, raising his eyes full of tears to heaven, exclaims to Him who is able to save all who trust in Him:

"In Thee, O Lord, I have placed my hope, that I shall not be put to shame for ever, that my enemies, the enemies of Thy servant, shall not laugh at me; Give me help in this hour and arrange all things according to Thy will, that Thy name may be glorified in me, Thy servant, for to Thee is due glory forever and ever. Amen."

Having prayed thus with tears, after many kneelings, he sank to the floor in exhaustion. Falling into oblivion, he sees himself in the company of some extraordinary creatures, in places he has never seen, namely, in some large plain adorned with beautiful, fragrant flowers, various trees, weighed down with wonderful fruits unknown to him, beautiful and very seductive in appearance. The leaves of the trees rustled merrily in the gentle breeze, spreading a pleasant aroma. There were thrones of pure gold, adorned with precious stones, from which a wonderful lustre emanated, and a couch covered with a veil, the beauty of which is inexpressible in words. The flowing bright waters delighted the eye. Across this wonderful, beautiful plain those extraordinary creatures led him in the direction of a magnificent city with glittering golden walls that ended in impregnable battlements of such stone as no one had ever seen. Oh, how to express all the beauty, all the splendor of this city?! The light of the sun's rays brightly illuminated the streets of the city, through which the troops marched cheerfully, themselves representing light, singing songs unheard of by the mortal ear.

And Joasaph heard a voice, saying that this is the resting place of the righteous, the joy of those who have been able to please the Lord. Then the same people that brought him in here wanted to lead him back. And he, filled with the blissful and joyous feeling that reigned there, said to them: "I beseech you, do not deprive me of this ineffable bliss, but allow me also to be with you in this great city." They answered him: "You cannot be here now; you can come here only when you work hard to be worthy of this life." Passing through the plain described above, they brought him to a place full of gloom and all that was unpleasant, which was the exact opposite of the splendor they had just seen: not a single spark of light penetrated there; everything was miserable and disorderly; in one place there was a punishing fiery furnace, in another a punishing worm crawled; The tormentors of the spirits stood by the furnace and mercilessly threw some of them into the fire. And a voice was heard, saying, "This is the place prepared for sinners; these are the punishments that last forever, appointed for those who have defiled themselves with shameful deeds." Then those who brought him brought him out of here. When the prince came to his senses, he trembled with fear; tears flowed from his eyes. Then he remembered the beautiful seductress girl. But, remembering what he saw in a dream, he loved the good even more and hated everything bad.

Meanwhile, the king was informed about the fainting of his son. Coming to him, the king began to ask what had happened. Joasaph tells what he saw in a dream, then says: "Why have you prepared a snare for my feet? Why hast thou made my soul droop? If the Lord were not my helper, then my soul would dwell in the land of torment. But how good the Lord is to the pure in heart! He delivered me from such a calamity. I was in confusion among the wild beasts, but God, my Saviour, looked mercifully upon me from the heights of heaven and showed me what blessings those who provoke Him are deprived of, and what punishments they prepare for themselves. Since you, Father, on your part, stop your ears so as not to hear me when I speak to you about the true good, at least do not hinder me from following this straight path. And I desire and strive here on earth to achieve only one thing: to withdraw from all vain things and live where Barlaam, a worthy servant of Christ, lives, in order to spend the rest of my life with him! But if you want to detain me by force and put me in your way, then you will soon see me dead from anguish and grief, and then you will no longer be my father and I will be your son."

Again despair took possession of the king; Again he repeated that it would be better for such a son not to be born, and again he returned to his palace in terrible agitation. The evil spirits sent by Theudas against the pious youth returned to him to announce their defeat; although they did not tell him this directly, their humiliated appearance testified more clearly than words to their humiliation. Then Theudas said to them: "You are miserable and insignificant creatures, who could not overcome even one boy." The demons, punished by the power of God, were forced to tell him about everything that had happened. "We cannot," they said, "even raise our eyes before the power of Christ, before His symbol of suffering, which is called the Cross. For as soon as anyone begins to depict this sign, we, the lords of darkness, hasten to flee even before it is over. At the very attack on this young man, we had to retreat immediately, since he called on Christ for help, armed himself with the sign of the Cross, which angrily dispersed us, and gained lasting help for himself. We rashly chose the means that our head used against the first man; We expected too little from the young man. But Christ, called to his aid, burned us from above with the flame of His wrath and put us to flight; now we have resolved never again to approach this young man." And the evil spirits explained to Theudas in detail all that had happened.

Being again at a loss as to what he should do, the king again summoned Theudas and said to him: "We have fulfilled, most wise man, everything according to what you have taught us, but it has led to nothing. If you can give us any other advice, we'll try that too. Perhaps we will finally find deliverance from this evil!" Following the advice, the king, taking Theudas with him, went to his son in the morning. Coming to him, he again heaped reproaches and abuse upon him for his disobedience and for the steadfastness of his conviction. When Joasaph began to assert, as usual, that nothing could induce him to abandon his love for Christ, Theudas interrupted him, saying: "What, Joasaph, has caused you to despise our gods, to cease to serve them, and in consequence to anger your father and become an object of popular hatred? Did you not receive life from them? Did they not give you to your father, heeding his prayers and taking pity on his childlessness?"

Conversation of the wise Joasaph with Theudas, his denunciation and victory over idols

After waiting a while, the son of the kingdom of heaven, a citizen of the city he had seen, built not by men, but by the Lord, said to Theudas: "Listen to me, the depth of ignorance, impassable darkness and error, listen, you empty, unfortunate and miserable old man, whose sins are heavier than the cities of the entire Pentapolis, burned by the heavenly divine fire! Do you want to mock the saving teaching, thanks to which the world has been enlightened, the lost have found the true way, the lost and enslaved have been called out of their terrible situation.. Tell me, Theudas, what is better: to serve and worship Almighty God the Father, His Only-begotten Son and Holy Spirit, the uncreated, immortal God, the beginning and source of all blessings, Whose power is incomparable, Whose glory is incomprehensible, Whom is surrounded by countless millions of legions of heavenly Angels, Whose glory is full of all heaven and earth, Who created all things out of nothing, rules over all and everything, and by Whose Providence all things live and are protected? Is it better to worship and serve this God, or is it better to worship and serve evil spirits, dumb idols, the praise and glorification of which is debauchery, the seduction of children, is the sum total of all that is lawless, as it is said in our teaching on idolatry and superstition?