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St. Ammon quotes freely. In the Life of Euthychius, Patriarch of Constantinople (sixth century), it is narrated how, as a monk, he was distinguished by extreme humility and became "the first of all" to fulfill this commandment of the Lord (cf. Mk. 9:35) (see: Eustratii Presbyteri Vita Eutychii Patriarchae Constantinopolitani / Edidit Carl Laga, Corpus Christianorum. Series Graeca. Vol. 25. Turnhout; Leuven, 1992. P. 19). Prep. St. Symeon the New Theologian, in one of his hymns, addressing the "lovers of God," calls upon them to heed the sayings of the Lord: "If you do not lay aside glory, if you do not renounce riches, if you do not completely put off empty self-conceit (ματαίαν ο<ησ<ν), if you do not become the last of all in deeds and in thoughts themselves, but rather in ideas ("thoughts" — ταΓς εννο<α<ς), considering yourselves to be the last of all, then you do not acquire either the fountains of tears or the purification of the flesh" (Divine Hymns of St. Symeon the New Theologian / Translated from Greek by Hieromonk Panteleimon (Uspensky), pp. 239–240. Greek text: Symeow /e NoMoeaM TAeo/ogiew. Hymnes. T. II / Ed. par J. Koder et L. Neyrand // Sources chretiennes. № 174. Paris, 1971. P. 406).

165

In this phrase, the term μελέτη (lit.; exercise, occupation) attracts attention; in Christian writing, it had, among other things, the meaning of "the study of the Holy Scriptures." Such "study" was at the same time "meditation," but reflection not on the level of rational (discursive) thinking, but on the spiritual level, that is, in the process of acquiring the Holy Spirit, and therefore inconceivable without prayer and good deeds (the further development of St. Ammon's thoughts clearly shows this). Such semantic nuances of the word are already outlined in early Christian writing. For example, in the Epistle of Barnabas the following interpretation of an Old Testament commandment is given (Lev. 11:3: the precept is "everything that has cloven hoofs and belches the cud"). This commandment of Moses means, according to the author of the Epistle, that one should "cling to those who fear the Lord, meditate (των μελετώντων) in their hearts about the commandment they have received, converse about the commandments of the Lord and keep them, knowing that meditation is a joyful deed (ή μελέτη έστ<ν έργον ευφροσύνης)." (Epitre de Barnabe / Ed. par P. Prigent // Sources chretiennes. № 172. Paris, 1971. P. 156–158). A similar interpretation of this commandment is found in St. Irenaeus of Lyons, who says that clean animals that regurgitate the cud mean people "day and night thinking about the words of God, in order to adorn themselves with good deeds" (Лрмнем Лмонскм, се. Five Books Against Heresies, Moscow, 1868, p. 596). Also noteworthy in this respect is Origen's commentary on Jer. 4, 3 (take the margins, m not semte on turnmm); Origen understands this commandment in two ways: as a call from God addressed to Christian teachers ("cateches"), who must "plow" the virgin soil of the souls of catechumens, and then "sow" them with "holy seeds", that is, the teaching about the Holy Trinity, about resurrection, about [eternal] punishment, etc.; However, the commandment can also be understood as a call to every Christian, who must become "the farmer of himself" (γεωργός γενοΰσεαυτοΰ). Moreover, the "thorns" that grow in the human soul are "worldly cares and lust for wealth" (μερ<μνα< βίωτίχα< χα< πλούτου φίληδονία). In order to destroy them, a Christian must acquire a "spiritual plough" (τό λογίχόν αροτρον – cf. Luke 9:62). When he finds it, he should gather from the Scriptures oxen — "pure laborers" — and plough the earth [of the soul], making it new, that is, put off the old man and put on the new man. After this, the land of the soul will become a "new field" (τό νέωμα), and it must be planted, by means of memory and reflection (δίά τ% μνήμης χαίτες μελέτης), with seeds taken from [Christian] teachers (άπό των δίδασχόντων), from the Law, from the Prophets, from the Gospel Scriptures, and from the apostolic sayings (see PG. Vol. 13, Col. 312-313).

166

In order to understand this phrase (ώς άδίαλεί'πτως σύναξίν ποίων), it is necessary to recall that the Egyptian monks who were nourished by St. Ammon usually lived in monasteries of the semi-hermit type, gathering only on Sundays and feast days for joint worship. St. Ammon exhorts the monks to constantly strive towards the ideal of Christian life, which was well expressed by Archimandrite Cyprian: "Our worldview must be Eucharistic and must live in a Eucharistic mood" (Khmirmian (Hern), Argmjändrmt, Eucharist, Paris, 1947, p. 28).

167

The verb αγοράζω ("to buy", "to redeem") refers to the dogma of the Lord's redemptive sacrifice. It is based on "the idea of retribution to the law of Divine truth, the rights of which are trampled upon by the sin of man, the idea of the necessity of paying a debt to God on the part of man and the payment of this debt by Christ in place of mankind – this idea at the very beginning of the ancient Church was its inalienable property and found its clear expression already in the first Christian writers." The consequence of this idea was the idea "that the sufferings and death of Jesus Christ are a propitiatory sacrifice to God the Father, by whom the human race is delivered from sin, curse and death and is reconciled to God. This idea is actually the essence of the Church's teaching on the redemptive sacrifice of Christ, and it is do2zhazh" (Orfyanmzhskmm I. Historical exposition of the dogma about the redemptive sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ. Moscow, 1904. pp. 147–150).

168

This phrase (τη δε συνε<δήσε< άπο^ανών) probably presupposes the widespread idea in patristic writings of conscience as the inner judge and accuser of man. Usually, the Fathers of the Church call conscience "an internal, one's own judgment seat," in which judgment (χρ<σ<ς) takes place and sentences are drawn up (ψή^ο<). Sometimes conscience is called "a judge who is constantly awake, vigilant, undeceiving and incorruptible"; an accuser who acts before, during, and after the commission of a sin, an admonitor who persuades them to abandon sin, a rebuke and a punisher. "In general, conscience is our adversary (άντ<δ<χος) when we wish to do the will of our flesh, according to the expression of Abba Isaiah" (Loioe D. Blessed Diadochos (V century), Bishop of Photica of Ancient Epirus, the doctrine of reason, conscience and thoughts // Proceedings of the Kiev Theological Academy. 1898. № 7. Pp. 458–460). Therefore, a Christian, according to St. Ammon, must daily stand before his conscience, as one who has died before God, the Judge of all.