Homilies of St. Symeon the New Theologian. Part 2. - Moscow: Pravila very, 2001, pp. 82-92.

Homily Sixty-Six. 1. About repentance, and that for the purification of the soul it is not enough to give up possessions, if we do not also gain weeping. 2. About the expulsion of Adam from paradise, and that if he had repented after transgressing the commandment of God, he would not have been expelled from paradise. 3. What good did repentance bring him, and what did he bring after his exile? 4. How one who wants to truly repent should repent. 5. On the Second Coming of the Lord. 6. The rebuke of those who do not live badly, but not with a good disposition, but feignedly.

Repentance is a good deed, and great is the benefit that comes from it. Our Lord Jesus Christ God, Who seers all things, knew this, and said: Repent, the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Do you also want to learn and know that without repentance it is impossible for us to be saved? And I mean repentance that comes from the whole soul and from the whole heart. Listen to the Apostle, who says: "Every sin that a man commits is besides the body, but he who fornicates sins in his own body" (1 Corinthians 6:18). And again in another place: "It behooves us all to appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that he may receive what he has done with the body, either good or evil" (2 Corinthians 5:10). But to this some may say: I thank God, I have not defiled my body by any shameful deed (which I, who have committed every sin, cannot say), - and saying this, he has some consolation from this, that he is clean from carnal sin. But our Lord Christ, in the parable of the five foolish virgins, gives a decisive assurance that we will not receive any benefit from bodily purity alone, if we do not have other virtues. Those five virgins also had a little oil in their vessels, that is, some outward virtues, and they also partook of certain gifts, from which their lamps burned for some time, but for their negligence, ignorance (in spiritual matters) and laziness they were condemned to eternal torment. They did not take care to cleanse themselves of the passions hidden in their souls, which were set in motion by demons, and did not even know them properly. For this reason their hearts were corrupted under the influence of demons through their association with thoughts, with which they secretly mixed, being captivated by them and conquered.

But what kind of demonic actions are these? Passions are envy, jealousy, quarrels, contentiousness, condemnation and slander, hatred, anger, grief, rancor, vanity, man-pleasing, self-gratification, love of money, carnal lust, which they delighted in and by means of sweetness committed fornication in thoughts; in addition to this are the passions of unbelief, fearlessness (before God), timidity (not knowing what), despondency, sorrow, contradiction, laziness, drowsiness, self-conceit, arrogance, pride, gluttony, lust, hopelessness, and all other subtle and hidden sinful passions set in motion by demons.

The blessed Apostle Paul cries out like Christ and says: "Have peace (διωχετε, persecute) and holiness with all, whom but none shall see the Lord (Hebrews 12:14). For what reason did he say: persecute, that is, always seek peace and holiness, seek unceasingly? Because it is impossible for us to become saints in one hour. It is necessary to begin with the lesser and, gradually succeeding, ascend to a more and more perfect holiness and purity. And even though we have lived in this life for thousands of years, we will never be able to attain the full perfection of holiness, but we have the duty to strive for its sake unceasingly, as if we had only now laid a beginning. This is shown by St. Paul when he says of himself: "I persecute, if I comprehend, I am also ashamed of Christ Jesus" (Phil. 3:12).

Therefore I beseech you, my brethren, to give heed to what I say to you, and listen to the words of your sinful brother. Come, let us worship and fall down before our good and loving God, let us precede His face in confession and weep before Him, Who created us: for He is our Lord, and we are His people, and the sheep of His pasture, and He will not turn His face away from us. Only let us repent with all our hearts and renounce not only evil deeds, but also the most evil and impure thoughts of our hearts, and destroy them completely. For the Divine Scripture says: "Tear apart your hearts, and not your garments" (Joel 2:13). What is the use, tell me, if we distribute our possessions to the poor, and do not abandon evil, and do not hate sin? What is also the use if we do not commit any carnal sin by deed, but nourish shameful and impure thoughts in our hearts, thus committing sin secretly in our souls and being possessed by impure passions of the soul? Let us, then, I beseech you, together with silver and gold, also reject our usual slavery to the passions; let us not stand in negligence, as we have hitherto, but let us accept the podvig of washing away the filth of the passions with tears of repentance.

Let any man who has sinned and covered the feelings of his soul with the impurity of sinful delights, distribute to the poor all his riches and leave the glory of his ranks, splendid houses, slaves, relatives, friends and acquaintances, and, having thus become poor, come and become a monk to the poor and the needless, but for all this, while he is alive, he also needs tears of repentance, which are absolutely necessary, in order to wash away and cleanse the filth of sins with them, especially if, like me, he is unclean not with some, but with great and many sins.

Thus, if we want to cleanse our souls from the defilements of sin, then it is not enough to distribute our possessions to the poor, but it is also necessary to weep and shed tears from the bottom of our hearts. I think of myself in such a way that if I do not cleanse the filth of my sins with my tears, but depart from this life defiled, then I will be righteously given over to mockery by both God and the angels, and cast into an inextinguishable fire together with the demons. Yes, my brethren, so it is truly. We have not contributed anything to the present life, so that, when we sin, we would give it to God for the atonement of our sins, as the Gospel says: "What will a man give treason for his soul? (Matt. 16:26). Behold the just judgment! This is righteous and true humility, as the Holy Spirit also says through the mouth of David: I will not receive bullocks from your house, nor goats from your flocks. For I am all beasts, oak groves, and so forth (Psalm 49:9-10). And again, if thou wouldst desire sacrifices, thou wouldst give them, for thou didst not delight in burnt offerings. Sacrifice to God: the spirit is broken; God will not despise a broken and humble heart (Psalm 50:18-19). Again Christ also says: "Do not think that you have come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I have not come to destroy, but to fulfill" (Matt. 5:17). For the old law could not heal souls from the invisible disease of sinful passions by earthly medicines, that is, by bodily justifications, gifts, sacrifices, burnt offerings, and so on. That is why the Forerunner John also says: "Behold the Lamb of God, take away the sins of the world" (John 1:29). Likewise, the Apostle Paul: "The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath set me free from the law of sin and death" (Romans 8:2).

Do you want to know how Christ fulfilled the law and the prophets, as He Himself says? Listen to me. The law says: Thou shalt not kill, but Christ: Be not angry; the law: Thou shalt not commit adultery, but Christ: Thou shalt not lust; The law, Thou shalt not swear falsely, but Christ, Thou shalt not swear at all.

All the commandments of Christ are given to us in opposition to sins; in these commandments it is necessary to live and zealously fulfill them for everyone who wishes to be vouchsafed the Kingdom of Heaven; for everything else, one must be inactive and dead. Christ the Lord says: "If ye abide in Me, and My words abide in you, if ye will, ask, and it shall be given unto you" (John 15:7). Let us follow the word of Christ with zeal and zeal, until we reach the place where Christ dwells. Where Christ Himself dwells, there He draws those who follow Him, and places them in the holy of holies, as a Great Bishop, where He entered first, as a man like us, as He Himself says: "No one shall come to the Father but Me." I am the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). And again: Father, Thou hast given them unto Me, I will, that where I am, they also shall be with Me, that they may see My glory, which Thou hast given Me (John 17:24). Let us also be crucified with Christ, that is, let us endure every temptation that comes upon us, and let us die for love for Him for all worldly pleasures, that we may live with Him. Let us walk together with Him on the path that leads to heaven, keeping our hearts pure, for when we walk the path of His commandments and follow Him without turning back, then our enemy the devil will not be able to do us any harm, especially if we walk with a wise guide and good companions. Let us fear the example of the barren fig tree, cursed by Christ for its barrenness, and let us bring worthy fruit to Christ through repentance. Let us not allow ourselves to slumber through the negligence of our souls, and let us not allow ourselves to wander here and there in the delights of the world, at a time when we must labor in the practice of God's commandments, so as not to extinguish the lamp kindled and shining under the influence of the fruits of repentance, and not to become like the five foolish virgins. But by good and God-pleasing deeds let us multiply the talent of Christ's grace.

For for everyone in general, not only for monks, but also for laypeople, it is possible always to repent and weep, to pray to God and to succeed in all virtues.

Such were those who lived before Christ: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Lot, Moses, David, I will leave the rest, because they were many, but in the new grace, during the incarnate economy of Christ our God, the Apostle Peter, an unlearned fisherman, who preached Christ throughout the whole world. However, who can count them all, when they are more than the sand of the sea? There were many kings, princes, and persons in authority (not to mention the poor), who, with great dependence, built cities, palaces, churches of God, almshouses, and hospices, which have survived to this day. Having all this during their lifetime, they used it piously and pleasing to God, not as masters and rulers, but as servants of God, disposing of what God had given them, as it pleased God. They used the world, as St. Paul says, but they did not abuse it. Why, even living in the world, they were glorious and famous, and in the next life in the kingdom of heaven they will be more glorious and radiant for endless ages. In the same way, if we were not negligent and careless despises of God's commandments, but zealous, zealous and attentive fulfillers of them, then we would not have the need to abandon our possessions, withdraw from the world and become monks. But in order that you may be better convinced of this, listen to what will be said next.

2. In the beginning, God created man as king of all earthly things, and not only earthly things, but also those things that are under the roof of heaven, for the sun, the moon, and the stars were created for man. And so, being the king of all these visible things, did man suffer any harm to virtue from this? No, he did not. On the contrary, if he had always thanked God for this, Who created him, and dedicated all this to Him, then he would have increased in virtue. And if he had not transgressed the commandments of God, then, of course, he would not have lost his kingdom, which he had, and would not have fallen from the glory of God. But as soon as he transgressed the commandment of God, he was righteously expelled from paradise, and began to live in labor and trouble, and died in exile.

And listen, I will tell you something that no one has yet said with complete clarity. The Divine Scripture says: God said to Adam, 'Adam, where art thou?' (Gen. 3:9). Why does the Creator of all things say this? Of course, in order to dispose Adam to come to his senses, to recognize his sin and to repent. For this reason he says: Adam, where art thou? As if to say: Adam, enter into thyself, know thy nakedness, and understand what garment and what glory thou hast lost: Adam, where art thou? In a way, as it were, He stirs him up and says: O Adam, come to yourself and humbly confess your sin. Get out of where you are hiding. Do you think you will hide from Me? Say, I have sinned. "But he does not say this (or rather, I, poor man, do not say this, because it is my own passion), and what does he say?" I heard the voice of Thee, walking in paradise, and feared, for I was naked, and hid myself (10). And what did God say to him: "Who shall tell thee that thou art naked, except of the tree, whose commandments thou alone hast eaten, of which thou hast eaten? (11). Do you see, beloved, the mercy of God? That when God said to Adam, "Where art thou," and Adam did not confess his sin, but said, "I heard the voice of Thee, walking in the garden, and feared that I was naked, and hid myself," He was not immediately angry with him, nor turned away from him, but again asked him, saying, "Who shall tell thee that thou art naked, except of the tree, whose commandments thou alone shall not eat? Did you eat from him? "Have you understood the depth of the wisdom of God, that when Adam said, 'I am naked,' God said to him, 'Why say you are naked, but hide your sin?' Do not think that I see only your body, and I do not see your heart and your thoughts. For Adam was deceived and really thought that God did not know about his sin, saying in a way in himself: "I will say that I am naked; God, not knowing the reason for this, will ask: "Why have you become naked?" And I will answer him: I do not know. Thus I will deceive Him and again receive the former covering. And if I do not receive this, at least He will not immediately expel me from paradise and send me to another place. This is what Adam thought, as many do now, and I myself am the first, hiding my sins. But God, not wanting Adam's sin to be burdened by this lack of consciousness, said to him: "How did you know that you were naked, if you had not eaten of the tree, from which it was forbidden for you to eat?" It was as if he were saying to him, "And thou thinkest thou to hide thyself from me?" I do not know what I have done? Why do you not say, I have sinned? Say, wretched one: to her, O Lord! I have truly sinned, transgressing Thy commandment, I have listened to the counsel of my wife, and have committed a great sin, having acted according to her word, and transgressed Thy own. Have mercy on me, O God, and forgive me. But he does not say this, he is not humbled, he is not contrite; his heart is hardened, as is I, a poor man. If he had said this, he would have remained in paradise again and would not have been subjected to the deprivations that he experienced later. With this one word: if he sinned, he would atone for all the many years that he spent in hell.