2. But in order not to spread this word too much, you, as prudent people, can figure out all the rest for yourself: "Give instruction," it is said, "to the wise, and he will be wiser" (Prov. 9:9). This can be seen not only in our food, but also in the food of the dumb. And from many other things you can, if you will, learn through investigation the ineffable wisdom and immeasurable goodness of the highest Artist-God, to learn that all creatures were created for some rational purpose. Such shall we find the establishment of the Holy Forty Days for us. As on the main roads there are inns and inns, in which weary travelers can rest and rest from their labors, in order to continue their journey again; just as there are shores and harbors on the sea, where sailors, having crossed many waves and withstood the pressure of the winds, can rest for a while, in order to then begin sailing again — so at the present time the Lord has granted these two days in the week to those who have entered the path of fasting [i.e., the Saturdays and Sundays of the Holy Forty Days, on which the Church eases the strictness of the fast]. as if inns and inns, as if shores and harbors, for a short rest, so that those who make this good and salvific journey, having calmed their bodies a little from the labors of fasting, and encouraged their souls, again, after these two days, with zeal enter the same path. And so we, since now is the day of rest, let us ask your love to carefully preserve the fruits you have gained from fasting, so that, having rested a little, you may add new fruits to the former ones, and thus, little by little, having gathered great profits, you will meet the day of the Lord [i.e., the day of Pascha or the Resurrection of Christ], and bring your spiritual ship full into the harbor of the holy feast. If all the Lord's creatures, as our word has shown and as experience testifies, are done with a rational purpose, for the satisfaction of a necessary need, then our works must not be done simply and not in vain, but with benefit for our salvation. And those who are engaged in worldly affairs will never dare to enter into a matter until they see the benefits of it; all the more so should we act in this way and not spend the Lenten weeks carelessly, but question our conscience, examine our minds and see what we have done well in this week, what we have gained in the next, which of our passions we have corrected. If we do not arrange ourselves in this way and take such care of our souls, then there will be no benefit to us from fasting and not eating, especially when we turn out to be worse than those who make such an effort to collect money. See, each of these people uses all vigilance, as if every day to add something to the former, and is never satisfied, but the more his possessions increase, the more zeal and zeal increase. If, then, men show such vigilance where efforts are often fruitless, and riches do great harm to the salvation of the soul, how much more should they do so here, where diligence is of great benefit, unspeakable reward, and immeasurable gain? There, in addition to all that has been said, there is a great deal of uncertainty: the acquisition of property is not intentional, not only because at the onset of death it remains here and does not bring any benefit to the one who collected it, but also because he, for the property that remains here, must give the strictest account. It often happens that a person who has accumulated great wealth, after many labors, hard efforts and worries, with the onset, as it were, of some kind of storm, unfavorable circumstances, even before his death, suddenly becomes poorer than the poorest people – and this is seen every day. But with regard to spiritual wealth, we should never fear anything of the kind: it is firm and immovable, and where we need it most, it gives us great help.

3. And so, while we have time, I beseech you, let us use our efforts to acquire this spiritual wealth, though with as much diligence as these people, and never cease to be anxious whether we have done anything good, whether by our vigilance we have driven away from ourselves any passion that has disturbed us, so that, feeling the approval of our conscience, we may taste great pleasure. The point is not only that we come here every day, constantly hear about the same thing, and fast throughout the entire Forty Days. If we do not gain anything from our constant walking here and exhortation, and if we do not derive anything useful for our souls from the time of fasting, all this will not only be of no use to us, but will serve to lead to our greater condemnation, when, with such care (on the part of the Church), we will remain the same, — when the angry one does not become quiet, the hot-tempered will not turn to meekness, and the envious will not turn to benevolence, the covetous will not abandon his passion and will not dispose himself to give alms and feed the poor, the profligate will not become chaste, he who pursues vain fame will not learn to despise it and seek true glory, he who does not care about love for his neighbor will not rise up and accustom himself not only to this, to be no worse than the publicans ("For if," it is said, "you love those who love you, what reward will you have? Do not the tax collectors do the same?" 5:46), but also to such a state of mind as to look meekly at one's enemies and show great love for them.

We, as having been ordained (to the degree of teachers) by the grace of God, every day summon you, as spiritual children, to this school, and offer you salvific instruction, whereby we do not communicate our own inventions, but expound the teaching given to us by the Lord in the Divine Scriptures, which we openly expound and constantly inculcate. And so, when we use all diligence and care, and daily lead you on the path of virtue, while you remain in the same state, then consider what sorrow will be for us, what condemnation will be for you, so as not to say more? Of course, we are relieved of all responsibility by the fact that we have not omitted anything necessary for your edification; yet, since we care for your salvation, we cannot easily endure (your carelessness). And the teacher, when he does not notice in the disciple any fruit from his efforts, is not a little grieved and sick, seeing that he labors in vain.

4. I say this now not in order to grieve your love, but in order to arouse and dispose you not to exhaust your body only with fasting, and not to spend the days of the Holy Forty Days in vain and in vain. And what do I say, the days of the Holy Forty Days, when we are not allowed to spend a single day, as far as possible in our entire lives, without acquiring spiritual fruit for ourselves during it, either by prayer, or confession, or almsgiving, or by any other spiritual work? If Paul, such a great man, who heard those ineffable words which no one has heard until today, cried out for himself: "I die every day: I bear witness of this by your praise" (1 Cor. 15:31), teaching us that he was so often exposed to danger for his godliness, that every day he was close to death, and what nature did not allow (for we are all subject to death alone), then the zeal of his will was accomplished, although the loving God preserved him for a long time for the salvation of others, — so, if he, glorious for such feats and appearing on earth like an angel, every day tried to gain something, to take up arms against dangers for the truth, to accumulate spiritual wealth for himself, and never to stop,

And it happens to a sick body that if a physician repeatedly applies a remedy, and the sick person does not want to wait for it to take effect, but being angry and unable to endure the pain of the medicine applied by the doctor, tears it off and does not benefit from it, then no well-meaning person will reproach the physician who has done everything on his part. So here, too, we, having composed a cure out of spiritual instruction, offer it to you; and then it will be up to you to endure the pain, and to take advantage of the medicine, and, freed from the disease, to return to true health. Then you yourselves will receive great benefit, and we will feel no small joy, seeing that those who were previously sick have so soon become healthy.

And so, each of you, I beseech you, if you did not want to before, at least from this time on, try to remove from your soul that passion of which you know that it burdens him more than other passions, and, acting by pious reflection, as with a spiritual sword, free yourself from this passion. God has given us so much reason that with Him we can, if we wish to be at all attentive, overcome each of the passions that arise in us. For this reason the grace of the Spirit has described for us the life and activity of all the saints in the Divine Scriptures, so that, having learned how they, being of the same nature with us, performed every virtue, we would not be lazy to strive in it.

5. Was not Blessed Paul of the same nature with us? With the flame of love for this man; therefore I constantly turn to him and, looking at his soul as at a kind of prototype, I marvel at his mastery over the passions, his lofty courage, his ardent love for God, and I reflect on how one man through his diligence acquired the entire set of virtues, and none of us wants to do even a small good deed. Who, then, will save us from the inevitable punishment, when he was of the same nature as us, was not alien to the same passions, and was in such difficult circumstances, every day, so to speak, being dragged out, tormented, and publicly tormented by the opponents of the (Gospel) preaching, who, often, considering him already dead, only then finally left him, as if having carried out their murderous design? And among us, weak and so negligent, is there anyone who would show such greatness of virtue? But in order for you not to hear from our lips about the exploits of this blessed one and about the courage that he daily showed (in the struggle) for the preaching of piety, you must listen to what he himself says. When, on account of the false testimony of the false apostles about him, he was compelled to tell about his deeds (and this was so painful and unpleasant for him that he refused and never wanted to announce his exploits, on the contrary, he openly called himself a blasphemer and a persecutor), so when he saw the absolute necessity of shutting the mouths of the deceivers and calming the disciples somewhat, then, after many other things, this is how he began to say: "But if anyone dares to boast of anything, then, I will say in foolishness, I dare also" (2 Cor. 11:21). See what a God-loving soul he calls this deed not only impudence, but also recklessness, teaching us never to divulge about our deeds unnecessarily, when no one compels us to do so, even if there are some among us who have done something good. "And if anyone," he says, "dares to boast of anything, then, I say in foolishness, I dare also," that is, since I see a perfect necessity, I decide to dare and do a foolish deed. "Are they Jews? and I. Israelites? and I. Abraham's seed? and I" (2 Cor. 11:22). This, he says, is exalted: let them not think that we lack this; and we share in the same (benefits). Then he added: "Servants of Christ? in madness I say, I am greater" (2 Cor. 11:23).

6. See here, beloved, how virtuous is the soul of this blessed one. He had already called what he had done insolent and foolish, — although he was made necessary, yet he was not satisfied with what he said. But when he made up his mind to declare that he was very much greater than those, lest anyone should think that he was saying this out of selfishness, he again called his words madness, as if to say: "Do I not know that I am doing a deed that is disagreeable to many, and unseemly to me?" But I am compelled to do so by urgent necessity; therefore forgive me for speaking foolish words. Let us imitate at least his shadow we, burdened with such a burden of sins, we, who, even if we sometimes do something good, cannot keep it in the treasuries of the heart, but divulge and discover it out of love for human glory, and by such inappropriate talkativeness deprive ourselves of the reward of God. Nothing of the kind happened to Blessed Paul. And what happened? "Servants of Christ?" he says, "in madness I say, I am greater." Then he already reveals those of his feats, which the false apostles did not perform. And how could they be done by people who were hostile to the truth, tried in every way to hinder the preaching of piety and disturbed the minds of ordinary people? Thus, having said: "I am greater," he already enumerates the feats of his courage and says: "I was more in labor, immeasurably in wounds, and many times near death." What do you say? Your words are strange and extraordinary. Is it possible to die more than once? Yes, he says, perhaps, if not by the deed itself, then by the intention. By this he teaches us that he was constantly exposed to such dangers for preaching that threatened him with death, but the grace of God preserved the ascetic in the midst of the most dangers, so that the disciples would receive great benefit from him. "At death," he says, "repeatedly. From the Jews five times I was given forty stripes without one; three times I was beaten with sticks, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent night and day in the depths of the sea; many times he was on journeys, in dangers on the rivers, in dangers from robbers, in dangers from fellow countrymen, in dangers from pagans, in dangers in the city, in dangers in the wilderness, in dangers at sea, in dangers among false brethren (2 Corinthians 11:24-26). Let us not pass these words, beloved, without heeding: each of them separately presents us with a sea of trials. He did not speak of one journey, but "in journeys," he says, "many times," he did not suffer trouble in the rivers, but many and different troubles, and all (endured) with great firmness. And after all this, he also says: "In toil and in weariness, often in vigilance, in hunger and thirst, often in fasting, in cold and nakedness, except for extraneous adventures" (2 Corinthians 11:27-28).

7. Here is another sea of trials opening up before us. By saying, "Except for extraneous adventures," he made it clear that he omitted much more than he said. And he did not stop there, but points out to us the anxieties he experienced from the multitude of people who flocked to him, saying thus: "A gathering of people daily, care for all the churches" (2 Cor. 11:28). Here again, and this podvig, even if it be alone, is enough to raise him to the very summit of virtue. "Care," he says, "for all the churches"—not one, not two, and three, but all that were in the world. As vast as the earth, which the sun illuminates with its rays, so great was the care and solicitude of this blessed one. Such is the breadth of the heart! Such is the greatness of the spirit! But what follows covers, so to speak, everything that has been said. "Who is weary," he says, "with whom I also am not weary? Whoever is offended, for whom I am not inflamed" (2 Cor. 11:29). Such is the tender love of this husband! That's how vigilant! Such is the solicitude! What mother is so tormented inwardly for her child, who is burning with fever and lying on his bed, how this blessed one was helpless for the weak, wherever they were, and worried about those who were offended? Look how strongly he expressed himself. He did not say, "Whosoever is offended, for whom I grieve"; but "he was inflamed," he says, showing us the great power of sorrow, and letting us know that he was as if inflamed and burned inwardly for those who were subjected to temptations. I know that I have greatly extended my teaching, although I intended to be brief today, so that you could take a little break from the work of fasting. But I do not know how, having touched upon the richness of the virtues of this saint, I am carried away by this kind of strong stream of waters. Therefore, having stopped the word here, I beseech your love to keep it constantly in mind and to constantly reflect on the fact that he who was of the same nature as us, subject to the same passions, who was engaged in a simple and unimportant craft – sewing leather and who was in the workshop, when he wanted and decided to devote himself to the feats of virtue and make himself worthy of receiving the Holy Spirit, received from above the most abundant bounties. In the same way, if we wish to do what is necessary on our part, nothing will prevent us from receiving the same bounties, because the Lord is generous and "wills that all men should be saved, and come to the knowledge of the truth" (1 Tim. 2:4). Let us make ourselves worthy, and with ardent zeal, though late, let us turn to virtue, and, suppressing our passions, let us make ourselves capable of receiving the Spirit, which may we all be worthy of, 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 12

To the words that follow the story of creation: "This is the origin of the heavens and the earth, when they were created, at the time when the Lord God created the heavens and the earth" (Gen. 2:4).

Chrysostom's return to the explanation of the words of the Book of Chrysostom, interrupted for a while. Genesis about the creation that followed six days. — What is the meaning of the book of Genesis of heaven and earth? Divine omnipotence in the productivity of the primitive earth and its foundation on the waters. The obedience of the earthly elements to the Lord and the need for a person to obey the will of God, if he does not want to become like senseless cattle. — The creation of the human body from the dust of the earth and the breath of life in his face. The superiority of the soul over the body and the lesson that follows from it.

1. Today let us fulfill our promise, offer the usual teaching, and add to what has been said before what we must now speak. You know that once and again we tried and wanted to do this, but concern for our brethren led our tongue to exhort them.