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 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.

It would not have been so surprising if they had decided to wage a sensual war with the universe, as amazing is the deed they have done. According to the rules of war, it would be possible to stand face to face with the enemy, occupy the opposite country and prepare a formation against the enemy, have time to attack and retreat; But this is not the case. They did not form a special formation, but mingled with the enemies themselves, and thus defeated them; being in the midst of their enemies, they repelled their attacks, overcame and won a glorious victory, in which the prophetic word was fulfilled: "And rule among Thy enemies" (Psalm 109:2). It is amazing how the enemies, having them in their hands, throwing them into prisons and bonds, not only did not overcome them, but then they themselves submitted to them, the oppressors to the oppressed, the binders to the bound, the persecutors to the persecuted. All this we can say to the Gentiles, and even more: the treasury of truth is abundant. If you will heed what is offered, then we will teach you how to fight them in every possible way. Let us note for the moment two main circumstances: how did the weak conquer the strong, and how, being so, would they have dared to do such things, if they had not been assisted by divine help?

6. Here is the answer from our side. Meanwhile, we ourselves in our deeds will observe the purity of life and abundantly kindle the fire of virtue, because "you," says (the Apostle), "shine like lights in the world" (Phil. 2:15). Each of us has received from God the opportunity to be more useful than the sun, greater than the sky, the earth and the sea, as great as the spiritual is higher than the sensual. Therefore, looking at the circle of the sun and marveling at the beauty, substance and brilliance of this luminary, let us at the same time imagine that there is a higher and better light in us, just as there can be a thickest darkness if we are not attentive. Deep night covers the entire universe. Let us disperse and destroy it. Night is not only for heretics and pagans, but also for many among us, both in faith and in life. Many do not believe in the resurrection, many tell fortunes at birth, many observe omens, resort to enchantments, sorcery, conventional signs, bandages and whisperings. However, we will speak to them later, when we have finished our speech to the Gentiles. Remember what has been said, and assist me in the struggle against them, converting and attracting them to us with your life. I always say that whoever teaches wisdom must manifest it in his life beforehand and be desired by his hearers.

Let us try to become desirable to the pagans and gain their favor with us. And this will happen when we are ready not only to do good, but also to endure evil. Do we not see how children, being in the arms of their father, beat him on the cheeks, how the father gladly allows the child to satisfy his anger, and when he sees that his anger has passed, he is comforted? Thus will we do: let us speak to the Gentiles as fathers to their children. All pagans are real children; some of them themselves said that they were always children and there was not a single elder among them. Children do not want to think about anything useful; In the same way, the pagans want to be constantly amused and crawl on the earth, giving themselves over to low and earthly things. Children, hearing our conversations about necessary things, often do not understand anything of what is said, but laugh constantly; so it is with the Gentiles: when we speak of the kingdom (of heaven), they laugh. Children often salivate from their mouths and defile food and drink; so also out of the mouth of the Gentiles proceed vain and unclean words; you give them the necessary food, and they insult the givers with backbiting, and you must endure this.

Children are naked, not feeling ashamed and not blushing; so the pagans, mingling with fornicators and harlots, perverting the laws of nature and entering into unlawful relations, remain shameless. You applaud loudly and approve, but in these applause you see that it does not turn out to be said at your expense. I exhort all to be men; After all, if we ourselves are children, then how can we teach others to be husbands? How can we deliver them from childish foolishness? Let us be men, that we may attain "to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ" (Ephesians 4:13) and be vouchsafed good things to come, through grace and love for mankind (our Lord Jesus Christ, with Whom to the Father, with the Holy Spirit, be glory, dominion, honor, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages, Amen).

CONVERSATION 5

"See, brethren, who are you who are called: not many of you who are wise according to the flesh, not many strong, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolishness of the world to shame the wise" (1 Corinthians 1:26-27).

1. Having said, "The foolishness of God is wiser than men" (1 Corinthians 1:25), (Apostle Paul) expressed that the wisdom of men had been rejected, and proved this both by the testimony of the Scriptures and by the events themselves, the testimony of the Scriptures in the words, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise" (v. 19), and by the events in the question proposed, "Where is the wise man, where is the scribe?" (v. 20). At the same time, he showed that this matter is not new, but has long been known, since it was foreshadowed and foretold of old: "For it is written," he says: "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise." Then he proved that this was both useful and necessary: "for when the world in its wisdom did not know God in the wisdom of God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save believers"; that the cross is a proof of ineffable power and wisdom, and that the foolishness of God is much higher than human wisdom. Now he also proves not only on the part of the teachers, but also on the part of the disciples themselves: "Look," he says, "who are you who are called?" Not only the unlearned teachers, but also the disciples are chosen in the same way: "not many of you," he says, "who are wise according to the flesh." Thus great power and great wisdom are revealed, when many are convinced, and those who are not wise. The most difficult thing is to convince the ignorant, especially when it comes to necessary and great things. And yet they were persuaded, to which they themselves were witnesses: "For you see your calling, brethren, that is, look, consider." To teach the ignorant dogmas so wise and wisest of all, this is a sign of the greatest wisdom of the teacher. What does it mean, according to the flesh? In appearance, in everyday life, in external teaching. Lest it should be thought that he contradicts himself – and he persuaded the proconsul, and the Areopagite, and Apollos, and other wise men of whom we know that they received preaching – he does not say, "None of the wise," but, "Not many wise." He did not exclusively summon the ignorant, and rejected the wise, but also accepted the latter, much more than the former. Why is that? Because he who is wise in the flesh is full of great foolishness, and he is especially foolish when he does not want to reject the ungodly teaching. As in the case when a physician wants to teach others his art, people who know little, but use this art badly and perversely, and who are obstinate, cannot learn quickly, and those who know nothing can quickly accept the teaching, so it was here. The ignorant were more convinced, because they did not have the extreme madness to consider themselves wise. Verily, very mad are those who subject to the judgment of reason that which is assimilated only by faith. If a blacksmith, instead of taking out red-hot iron with tongs, were to do it with his hand, we would attribute it to his extreme madness; so the philosophers, trying to comprehend (the objects of faith) by themselves, degraded faith. Therefore, they did not find anything they were looking for. "Not many strong, not many noble." For even such people are filled with pride; and nothing is so harmful to the true knowledge of God as pride and addiction to wealth, because those who are devoted to them are amazed at the present, do not care about the future in the least, and block their ears with a multitude of cares. "But God has chosen the foolish things of the world." This is the greatest sign of victory – to conquer through the unwise.

2. The pagans are not so much put to shame when they are overcome by the wise as when they see that people who work with their own hands and belong to the common people are more wise than they are. Wherefore Paul said, "To put to shame the wise." And not only with this, but God did the same with other worldly advantages. "And he chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong." Not only the unlearned, but also the poor, the despised, and the ignoble, He called to shame the strong. "And God hath chosen the lowly things of the world, and the things that are despised, and the things that are nothing, to abolish the things that are" (v. 28). Who is called "meaningless here"? Those who consider themselves to be nothing because of great humiliation. Thus He manifested great power, bringing down the great ones through those who seemed to be nothing, as He says in another place: "My power is made perfect in weakness" (2 Corinthians 12:9). In fact, great power is needed to suddenly teach the most humble people who have never studied any study to be curious about what is higher than heaven. We are amazed at the physician and rhetorician, and all others, especially when they successfully persuade and teach the ignorant. If it is a great thing to instill in the ignorant the doctrine of some art, then how much more so is such wisdom. However, God did this not only in order to manifest a miracle, or to show His power, but also in order to humble those who are exalted. Wherefore the Apostle, as he said above, that he may put to shame the wise, that he may abolish that which is, so also here he says, "That no flesh should boast before God" (v. 29). God does everything [to humble pride and arrogance, to bring down self-boasting; and you, he says, give yourselves over to this? He does everything so that] we do not attribute anything to ourselves, so that we attribute everything to God: and you have given yourselves over to such and such? And what forgiveness will you deserve? God showed that it is impossible for us to be saved on our own, and He arranged this in the beginning. And then it was impossible to attain salvation on one's own, but it was necessary to contemplate the beauty of heaven and the majesty of the earth, and to investigate the nature of other creatures in order to ascend to the Creator of things. He did this in order to overthrow the arrogance that had appeared.

He gave us peace, as if it were a tablet; but the philosophers did not think about it, did not want to obey Him and go to Him in the way He commanded. Therefore, He proposed another way more clearly than the first, teaching that man himself alone is insufficient for himself. Formerly, it was possible to indulge in reasoning, to use external wisdom, under the guidance of nature; but now, whoever is not "foolish", i.e. does not abandon all reasoning and all wisdom and does not give himself over to faith, he cannot be saved. In this way, He accomplished a great deed: He offered a convenient way, and at the same time He destroyed the former illness and taught not to boast and not to be arrogant: "so that no flesh should boast." Sin comes from the fact that people want to be wiser than the laws of God and do not want to learn as He commanded; therefore they do not learn anything. So it was in the beginning. God said to Adam, "Do this, and do not do that; But he, thinking to find something more, did not listen – and lost what he had. Then He said, "Do not stop at creation, but through it know the Creator; and people, as if having found something wiser than what has been said, built themselves innumerable labyrinths; therefore they themselves were lost and entered into clashes with each other, they did not find God, nor did they know anything clear about creation, and did not form a proper and correct understanding of it. After this, wishing to decisively destroy their arrogance, He called first of all simple people, and thereby showed that all have need of wisdom from above. Not only in relation to knowledge, but also in all other respects, men and all other creatures have great need of Him; and this he did in order to give them a strong incentive to obedience and devotion, so that they would not perish when they were separated from him. That is why He did not allow them to be self-sufficient. For if even now, when they have need of Him, many leave Him, then, if this were not the case, to what oblivion would they not have fallen? It was not out of envy that He deprived them of the basis for exaltation, but in order to save them from the destruction that comes from this. "From Him also ye are in Christ Jesus, who is made unto us wisdom of God, righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption" (v. 30). By the word: "from Him," I think, the Apostle does not express the bringing from non-existence into being, but the bringing to faith, i.e. that we have become children of God "neither by blood, nor by the will of the flesh" (John 1:13). Do not think that by depriving us of the basis for exaltation, He has left us – no, – He has given us another praise, a greater one. You should not boast in His presence. You are His children, and you have become them through Christ. Having said: "The world's boisterous and the thin-born," the Apostle now shows that they have become nobler than all, because they have God as their Father; and the author of this nobility is not so-and-so, but Christ, who made us wise, righteous, and holy; This is the meaning of the words: "Wisdom shall be unto us."

3. Who is wiser than we, who have not Plato's wisdom, but Christ Himself, according to the will of God? What does it mean: from God? Having said something great about the Only-begotten, the Apostle also mentions the Father, so that no one would think that the Son was not begotten. He spoke of such great deeds and ascribed everything to the Son, explaining that the Son became for us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification and deliverance; now through the Son he leads all things to the Father, adding: from God. But why did he not say, "He made us wise," but "Wisdom be unto us"? By this he shows the abundance of the gift, as if to say: He gave us Himself. And see what gradualness he observes. First (he says) God made us wise, freeing us from error, then righteous and holy, giving us the Spirit, and thus delivered us from all evils, so that we became His (inheritance), of course, not in essence, but by faith.

In another place he says that we have become righteousness in Him: "For He made him who knew no sin for us [a sacrifice for] sin, that in Him we might become the righteousness of God" (2 Corinthians 5:21); but now He says that He has become righteousness for us, so that whoever desires can partake of Her abundantly. It was not so-and-so who made us wise, but Christ. Therefore, whoever wants to boast, let him boast in Him, and not in such and such or such: for everything was done by Christ. Wherefore, having said, "Who hath become unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption," the Apostle adds, "That it may be as it is written, He that boasteth, let him glory in the Lord" (v. 31). For this reason he rebelled strongly against pagan wisdom, in order to persuade people to boast of God as they should. When we seek for ourselves that which is higher than us, then there is nothing more foolish, nothing more powerless than ourselves. We can refine our language, but we cannot invent firm dogmas: our reasoning in itself is like a spider's web. Some have gone so mad that they say that of all that exists there is nothing true, but everything is contrary to what we imagine. Therefore, do not attribute anything to yourself, but boast of God in everything. Never attribute anything to any person; if nothing is to be ascribed to Paul, how much more to others: "I," he says, "planted, Apollos watered, but God grew" (1 Corinthians 3:6). Whoever has learned to boast in the Lord will never be exalted, but will always humble himself and thank Him for everything. This is not what the pagans do, but they attribute everything to themselves. That is why they make gods out of people: so pride has taken possession of them! However, it is time to fight them. Where did we stop in the previous conversation? We have said that, according to human reasoning, it was impossible for fishermen to defeat the philosophers; yet it is done, and therefore it is done by the power of grace. We have said that it was impossible for them to make up their minds to undertake such matters, and we have shown that they not only made up their minds, but ended them with great ease.

Today again we will talk mainly about the same thing: could they hope to conquer the world if they did not see Christ risen? Had they lost their minds, so they decided to do such a thing simply and thoughtlessly? Truly, it would be beyond all madness to expect success in such a great work, without the assistance of the grace of God. And how could they do this if they were mad and frenzied? And if they were of sound mind, as their very deeds showed, how could they, twelve men, gird themselves up and go forth to such battle, on land and sea, rebel against the customs of the whole universe, which had been rooted for so long, and rise up so courageously, if they had not had sure pledges from heaven and received help from on high? And, more important, how did they hope to persuade their listeners by calling them to heaven and the mansions on high? If they had been educated and brought up in glory, riches, and honors, though even then they would scarcely have made up their minds to undertake so great a cause, yet at least they might have had more hope; and here are some of the fishermen, some of the tanners, and some of the tax collectors. Such studies could least of all dispose to wisdom and promote high thoughts, especially if there was no such example. And not only did they not have examples of success in such enterprises; on the contrary, there were examples of failure, and the most recent ones. Many who attempted to innovate – I am not speaking of the Gentiles, who did not have it, but of the Jews themselves, at the same time – perished, having begun the work not with twelve men, but with a great multitude. Thus Theudas and Judas, having gathered a multitude of accomplices, perished together with their disciples (Acts 5:36-37). The fear of such examples would have sufficiently enlightened them, if they had not been convinced that victory could only be gained by divine power. And with the hope of success, how would they have dared to face such dangers if they had not had the future in mind? Let us suppose that they had a hope of success; but what benefit could they expect from converting everyone to the Non-Risen One, as you say?

4. If now people who believe in the doctrine of the kingdom of heaven and innumerable blessings hardly dare to face dangers, how did the apostles dare to expose themselves to them in vain, or, rather, to their own harm? If it had not been for what had happened, if Christ had not ascended to heaven, then, having decided to invent it and teach it to others, they would have offended God and would have had to expect terrible punishments from above. On the other hand, even if they had such a determination during Christ's lifetime, they would still have abandoned it after His death, since if He had not risen, they would have considered Him a deceiver and a deceiver. Do you not know that during the life of a general and a king, even weak troops hold out, and after death even the strong are discouraged? Tell me, what were the considerations that prompted them when they decided to begin preaching and go to the whole world? And what obstacles would not meet them? If they were ecstatic – I will not cease to repeat this – they would do absolutely nothing, because no one listens to those who are ecstatic; and if they did their work as they did, then the end shows that they were the wisest of all. If they were wiser than everyone else, then it is obvious that they did not go to preach easily. If they had not seen Christ risen, what could have led them to such a battle? What, on the contrary, would not deflect them from it? He told them that in three days he would rise again, promised the kingdom of heaven, prophesied that they, having received the Holy Spirit, would overcome the world, and proclaimed many other things that surpassed all the laws of nature. After this, if nothing of this kind had been fulfilled, they, although they had believed Him in life, would have ceased to believe in Him after His death, if they had not seen Him risen. They would have said, He said He would rise again in three days, and He did not rise again. promised to send the Spirit, and did not send it: how can we believe Him in the future, if the nearest one has turned out to be false? Why would they have preached that Christ had risen if He had not risen? Therefore, you will say that you loved Him. But then they would certainly have hated Him, as a seducer and a traitor, who, having inflamed them with innumerable hopes, excommunicated them from their homes, and from their relatives, and from everything, having armed all the Jewish people against them, then left them. If it had been only from weakness, they could have forgiven Him; but then they would consider it a great malice. He ought to speak the truth, and not promise heaven, if he were a mortal man, as you say. Then, of course, they would also begin to do the opposite, they would begin to reveal the deception and call Him a deceiver and an evildoer: in this way they would be delivered from dangers, and they would end the battle. If the Jews gave money to the soldiers so that they would say that His body had been stolen (Matthew 28:12-13), then what would not the disciples have received if they had come and said, "We have stolen Him, He has not risen"? Then, probably, they would have been rewarded with honors and crowns. Why then did they prefer reproach and calamity to all this, if there was not a divine power that worked in them more mightily than all this? If you are not yet convinced, then pay attention to the following: if there had not been (the resurrection of Christ), then the apostles, even if they were very ready, would not have preached about Him, but would have abhorred Him. You know that we do not even want to hear the names of those who cruelly deceived us. Why then did they preach His name? Did they hope to win with this name? On the contrary, they should have expected that even in case of victory they would perish, because they proclaimed the name of the deceiver. And if they wanted to conceal the past, they should not have preached, because their efforts would only be more provoked by abuse and laughter. And how could they invent all this? On the contrary, they would have forgotten what they had heard. If, when they had nothing to fear, they forgot many things, and did not understand anything else, as the Evangelist remarks (John 12:16), then, in the face of threatening danger, would not everything have gone out of their memory? And what can we say about words? Their very love for the Teacher was somewhat cooled by fear of future dangers, for which He reproached them. Formerly, following Him, they often asked, "Where are you going?" (John 13:36), and then, when He in a lengthy conversation presented to them the calamities they would be subjected to during His suffering on the Cross, they, stricken with fear, remained silent, about which, listen to how He Himself says: "None of you asks Me, Where are you going? But because I have said these things to you, your heart is filled with sorrow" (John 16:5-6). If they were so grieved while they were still waiting for His death and resurrection, then, not seeing Him resurrected, would they not have been completely discouraged, would they not have wished to be buried in the ground themselves, both from sorrow at the sight of deception and from fear of the future?