2. Therefore, say others, God is not a father (to the Son), but a brother. But, tell me, what is the need (of such a conclusion)? If we were to say that the Father and the Son have a being separated in their beginning, then perhaps you would have the right to say so. But we avoid such impiety, and say that the Father is both beginningless and unbegotten, and the Son is beginningless but begotten of the Father. What need is there from such a teaching to draw such an impious conclusion? There is no need. The Son is a reflection. And the reflection is inseparable from the nature of which the reflection is. For this reason Paul also called (the Son) (Heb. 1:3), so that we would not assume any separation between the Father and the Son. This is what is expressed by this name. By this likeness the Apostle corrects the absurd thoughts that come into the mind of senseless people. Hearing of the reflection, says the Apostle, do not think that the Son does not have a hypostasis of His own. Such a thought is impious and characteristic of the madness of the Sabellians and Marcellians. That's not how we teach; but we say that He has His own hypostasis. Therefore, having called Him a reflection, the Apostle adds that He is also "the image of His hypostasis" (the Father) (Hebrews 1:3), in order to express both His own hypostasis and consubstantiality with Him Who is an image. As I have already said, there is no single expression sufficient to convey to people all this teaching about God. It is desirable, at least by combining several expressions, to extract from each of them what is proper. In this way we can render a worthy praise to God – worthy, I say – that is, according to our ability. And if anyone thought that he could speak worthily about the very being of God, and tried to prove that he knows God as God knows himself, he would have no knowledge of God. Knowing this, let us hold fast to what "those who were eyewitnesses and ministers of the Word from the beginning" (Luke 1:2) have handed down to us, and let us experience nothing more. Two dangers threaten those who suffer from this disease: one is that they labor in vain in search of what cannot be found; the other, that they provoke God's anger by trying to transgress the limits set by Him. And what anger this arouses in God, there is no need to tell you, because you all know it. Thus, shunning the extravagance of heretics, let us listen with trembling to His words, so that He may always protect us. "On whom shall I look," He says, "on him who is humble and contrite in spirit, and on him who trembles at My word" (Isaiah 66:2)? And so, leaving this pernicious curiosity, let us begin to be better contrite in heart, let us weep over our sins, as Christ commanded us. Let us mourn our crimes, let us carefully renew in our memory all that we have ventured to do in the past, and let us try to make amends for all this. God has opened many paths to this. "Speak thou, that thou mayest be justified" (Isaiah 43:26). And in another place: "I said, 'I confess my transgressions to the Lord,' and Thou hast taken away from me the guilt of my sin" (Psalm 31:5). Thus, the frequent remembrance of sins and the accusation of oneself of them contribute not a little to the lessening of their greatness. There is another way, even more sure, when we do not remember the evil against anyone who has sinned against us, when we forgive everyone who has committed offenses against us. Do you want to know the third way? Listen to what Daniel says: "Atone for your sins with righteousness, and your iniquities with mercy to the poor" (Dan. 4:24). There is another way, besides this: frequent exercise in prayer, constant diligence in prayer to God. Fasting also brings us much consolation and forgiveness of sins, when it is combined with love for one's neighbor; it also quenches the power of God's wrath. "Water will quench the flame of fire, and alms will cleanse sins" (Sir. 3:30). So, let's walk along all these paths. If we always adhere to them and turn our attention to them, then we will not only cleanse the past crimes, but we will also gain a great deal of benefit for ourselves in the future - we will not give the devil the opportunity to attack us, and we ourselves will not fall into the carelessness of life, into this fatal curiosity. The devil, by the way, leads to this, and then to these reckless searches and harmful verbal disputes, as soon as he notices that people give themselves over to idleness and inactivity, not caring at all about a virtuous life. But we will bar this passage for him, let us be vigilant, sober, so that, after a short time of small labors, we may attain to endless ages immortal blessings, through the grace and love of mankind of our Lord Jesus Christ, through Whom and with Whom be glory to the Father with the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen.

CONVERSATION 8

"There was a true Light, which enlighteneth every man that cometh into the world" (John 1:9).

1. Nothing prevents us from touching upon these words again today, because the last exposition of the dogmas did not allow us to follow all that we read. Where are those who say that the Son is not the true God? Here He is called the "True Light," and in another place the "truth" itself and the "life" itself. These last words, however, we shall examine more clearly when we come to them; And now it is necessary to tell your love about light. If he "enlightens every man that cometh into the world," why do so many people remain unenlightened? Because, of course, not everyone has come to know the faith of Christ. How does he "enlighten every man"? It depends on the acceptability of each. If some, having willingly closed the eyes of the mind, do not want to receive the rays of this light, then their darkness comes not from the nature of the light itself, but from the malice of these people, who voluntarily deprive themselves of the gift. Grace is poured out on all; it is not alien to the Jew, nor to the Greek, nor to the barbarian, nor to the Scythian, nor to the free, nor to slave, nor to husband, nor to wife, nor to old man, nor to youth; She is equally close to everyone and calls everyone equally honorably. But those who do not want to make use of this gift must justly ascribe such blindness to themselves. If, then, as the entrance is open to all, and no one blocks it, some remain outside through arbitrary hardening, then they perish not from anything else, but from their own depravity. "He was in the world" (v. 10), but not as contemporary with the world; No. For this reason (the Evangelist) adds: "And the world was made through Him" (v. 10). Through this, he again raises you to the pre-eternal existence of the Only-begotten. Whoever hears that everything is His creation, even if he is completely insensible, even if he is an enemy and opponent of the glory of God, in any case, willingly or unwillingly, will be forced to admit that the Creator exists before the creatures. That is why I am always amazed at the folly of Paul of Samosata, how he dared to contradict such an obvious truth, and voluntarily plunged himself into the abyss. He did not err through ignorance, but, understanding the matter very well, he suffered the same fate as the Jews. Just as the Jews, having in mind the judgment of men, abandoned the sound faith, and although they knew that Jesus was the Only-begotten Son of God, but for the sake of their rulers, they did not confess, so as not to be expelled from the synagogue, so Paul of Samosata, as they say, out of pleasing a certain woman, denied his salvation. Truly, terrible, terrible is the predominance of vanity; it can blind the eyes of wise people if they do not watch. If bribery can do this, so much the greater is the passion of vanity, which is much stronger. That is why Christ said to the Jews: "How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another, and do not seek the glory that is from the One God" (John 5:44)? "And the world did not know Him." The Evangelist here calls the world a multitude of corrupt people, devoted to earthly affairs, a crowd, a rebellious and senseless people. But the friends of God and all wondrous men knew Christ even before His appearance in the flesh. It was about the forefather that Christ Himself said: "Abraham your father rejoiced to see My day; and he saw and rejoiced" (John 8:56). And of David, in rebuke of the Jews, He said: "How then David, by inspiration, calls Him Lord, when He says, The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at My right hand, until I make Thy enemies Thy footstool" (Matt. 22:43,44). Many times, in disputing with them, He also mentions Moses; and about the other prophets, the Apostle. And that all the prophets, beginning with Samuel, knew Christ and foretold His coming long ago, the Apostle Peter says: "And all the prophets, from Samuel and after him, however many they spoke, also foretold these days" (Acts 3:24). To Jacob and his father, as well as to his grandfather, God Himself appeared, conversed with them, promising to grant them many and great blessings, which He did, in fact. How, you will say, did He Himself say: "Many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear" (Luke 10:24)? How did they know Him? Of course they did; and I will try to prove it from the same words from which some conclude that the prophets had no knowledge of Jesus Christ. He says, "Many desired to see what you see"; it means that they knew that He would come to people and do the works that He did. And if they did not know this, they would not want to see, because no one can desire what he does not know at all. Therefore, they knew the Son of God, and they also knew that He would come to people. But what is it that they have not seen or heard? What you see and hear now. The prophets, although they heard His voice and saw Him Himself, were not in the flesh, not in the form in which He dealt with people and openly conversed with them. He Himself clearly points to this, He does not simply say: they wanted to see Me, but how? They wanted to "see what you see"; nor did he say, "They wanted to hear me," but, "What do you hear?" Thus, although they did not see His appearance in the flesh, they knew that it would be, and they desired it. They believed in Christ, although they did not see Him in the flesh. But if the pagans, thinking to reproach us, ask: what did Christ do before, when He did not yet care for the human race? Why did He, having left us for such a long time without care, come in recent times to arrange our salvation? – we will say that even before that time He was in the world, arranging affairs and being led by all who were worthy. And if you say that He was unknown because not everyone knew Him then, but only the chosen and virtuous people, then on this basis you will perhaps admit that even at the present time He has no worship from men, because even now not everyone knows Him. But just as at the present time no one can deny that there are people who know Him, only because there are people who do not know Him, so it cannot be doubted in relation to former times, because many, or rather, all the chosen and wondrous men knew Him.

2. But if anyone were to ask, why then did not all believe in Him, and not all revere Him, but only the righteous? – then I also ask: why do not everyone know Him even at the present time? What can we say about Christ? Why, as before, so now, do not all know His Father? Some say that everything (in the world) is self-moving; others attribute the care of everything to demons; and there are also those who, besides the true God, have invented for themselves some other God; some of them blaspheme, asserting that there is some power contrary to God, and still think that the laws of God belong to some evil spirit. What then? Is it because some reject God, and we will say the same, or will we agree that He is evil, since some also utter this blasphemy? Away with this recklessness and this utter madness! If we were to verify the dogmas with the judgment of these insane people, then nothing would keep us from extreme madness. Of course, no one will say that the sun is harmful to the eyes, because there are those who are sick with the eyes; on the contrary, it is luminous according to the judgment of healthy people. No one will say that honey is bitter either, because it seems so to the taste of patients. Is it not, then, following the example of the sick, that some assert that either there is no God, or that He is evil, that sometimes He provides, and sometimes He does not do it at all? And who will say that they are healthy people? On the contrary, are they not people who are frenzied, insane and extremely insane? "The world did not know Him," it is said; nevertheless, those whom the world was unworthy of have come to know Him. Having spoken of those who did not know Him, the Evangelist briefly sets forth the reason for this ignorance; He does not simply say, "No one has known Him," but, "the world has not known Him," i.e., people who are devoted to the world alone and think only of worldly things. Thus Christ used to call them, as when He said: "Righteous Father! and the world did not know Thee" (John 17:25). But the world, as we have said, has not known not only the Son, but also the Father, because nothing disturbs the intellect so much as attachment to temporal objects. Knowing this, withdraw as much as possible from the world and abstain from the deeds of the flesh; from them comes a loss not in accidental, but in the highest goods. A person who is too busy with the affairs of the present life cannot properly assimilate the heavenly things; but out of necessity, taking care of them, he is deprived of these. "Ye cannot," it is said, "serve God and mammon" (Luke 16:13). Following the one, it is necessary to leave the other if necessary. And this is what experience itself says. Those who laugh at the passion for wealth are the ones who love God the most, as they should. On the contrary, those who highly value wealth as the first good have the least love for God. The soul, once captivated by covetousness, can no longer easily and comfortably restrain itself from doing or saying something that angers God, since it already becomes the slave of another master, and moreover, one who commands it to do everything contrary to God.

Arise, therefore, and awake, and when we consider what kind of master we are slaves, let us love only His power; let us weep and weep for the former time in which we worked mammon; let us cast off once and for all its heavy, unbearable yoke, and let us constantly bear the yoke of Christ, light and joyful; Christ does not command anything that inspires mammon. She commands everyone to be enemies; and Christ is the opposite: to have mercy and to love. She, having tied us to dust and dust (such is gold), does not allow us to breathe freely, even at night; and Christ frees us from this superfluous and unreasonable care, commands us to lay up treasures in heaven, not by unrighteousness in relation to others, but by our own righteousness. Mammon, after so many labors and sorrows, cannot even remain with us when we "there" endure punishments and suffer evil for the fulfillment of her suggestions; it will even increase the flame for us; and Christ, even when He commands us to give our neighbor a cup of cold water, will not allow us to lose our reward and retribution for this, but will reward us with great generosity. So, isn't it extremely reckless –

Very many of those who will be punished will suffer punishment precisely because they served money, loved gold, and did not help those in need. In order that we may not suffer the same, let us squander (our treasures), giving them to the poor; to free one's soul both from the evil cares of this world and from the future torments prepared for it. Let us prepare for ourselves justification in heaven; instead of earthly acquisitions, let us gather up inexhaustible treasures, treasures that can accompany us to heaven, can protect us in danger, and then propitiate the Judge. May He be well pleased with us all, now and on that day, and may we enjoy with great boldness the good things that are prepared in heaven for those who love Him, according to the grace and love of our Lord Jesus Christ, with whom be glory to the Father with the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

CONVERSATION 9

"He came to his own, and his own received him not" (John 1:11).

1. If you remember our former reflections, we will be more willing to continue our edification, receiving much benefit from it for ourselves. As soon as you have memorized what you have read, then our word will be more intelligible to you, and not much effort will be required from us, because you, with your curiosity, can already delve deeper into further teaching. Whoever always loses (from memory) what has been taught to him will always need a teacher and will never learn anything. And whoever keeps everything he has received and adds further (instructions) to it, he can soon become a teacher from a disciple and will be useful not only for himself, but also for others. I hope that this will be the coming meeting, and I conclude it from his great zeal for listening. Therefore, in your souls, as in a safe storehouse, we will put the silver of the Lord, and, as far as the grace of the Spirit helps, we will explain the reading offered to us today. The Evangelist, speaking of former times, said: "The world did not know Him"; further, turning his speech to the time of the sermon itself, he says: "He came to his own, and his own received Him not." "His own" here he calls the Jews, as a special people, or all people, as descended from this people. And just as above, grieving over the foolishness of many people and ashaming the general spirit (of time), he said that he did not know the Creator of the world that came through Him, so here, indignant at the ingratitude of the Jews and many others, he utters an even more grievous condemnation, saying: "His own did not receive Him," while He came to them. But not only the Evangelist, but also the prophets said the same thing with amazement, and finally, Paul, amazed at the same. Thus the prophets cried, speaking in the name of Jesus Christ: "A people whom I did not know serve me; by the mere rumor of me they obey me; foreigners caress me before me; the foreigners turn pale and tremble in their fortifications" (Psalm 17:44-46). And in another place: "So many nations will He cause to be amazed; for they shall see things which have not been spoken of them, and they shall know things which they have not heard" (Isaiah 52:15). Also, "I have made myself known to them that have not inquired about me; Those who have not sought Me have found Me" (65:1). And Paul, in the Epistle to the Romans, said, "What then? Israel did not get what they sought; but the elect received" (Romans 11:7). And in another place: "What shall we say? The Gentiles who did not seek righteousness received righteousness. But Israel, which sought the law of righteousness, did not reach the law of righteousness" (Romans 9:30,31). Truly, it is surprising how the Jews, who were brought up on the books of the prophets, who listened every day to Moses, who speaks very much about the coming of Christ, as well as to the other prophets who came after him, and finally saw Christ Himself, Who performed miracles for them every day, only conversed with them, and how He did not yet allow the disciples to "go not into the way of the Gentiles"; or to enter into any city of the Samaritans, he himself did not do this, and often said that he was sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, as, I say, the Jews, having received so many signs, hearing every day the prophets and Christ himself with His constant suggestions, so blinded and deafened themselves that nothing could lead them to faith in Christ.

Meanwhile, the pagans, having nothing of the kind in their possession, never having heard the divine pronouncements, even, so to speak, even in their sleep, were always occupied only with the ravings of insane people (such is the pagan philosophy), re-read the idle talk of the poets, were attached to trees and stones, and knew nothing sound and useful either in beliefs or in the rules of life; and their life was even more impure and criminal than their teaching. And how could it be otherwise, when they saw that their gods found pleasure in every vice, that they were honored with shameful words and still more shameful deeds, and received this as a feast and honor; moreover, they are honored with abominable murders and the murder of children, and in this people imitated the gods. But despite the fact that they had descended to such a depth of evil, suddenly, as if by some kind of machine, they rose to the heights and appeared to us, shining from the very top of the heavens. How did this happen and why? Listen to what Paul says about this. The blessed Apostle, carefully examining these circumstances, did not abandon them until he had found the reason and explained it to all. What is this reason? And why were the Jews so blind? Listen to what he himself says about this, he to whom this economy was entrusted. What does he say to resolve such a misunderstanding of many? "Not understanding," he says, "the righteousness of God, and striving to establish their own righteousness, they did not submit to the righteousness of God" (Romans 10:3). That is why they were subjected to such misfortune. And in another place, expounding the same thing in a different way, the Apostle says: "What shall we say? The Gentiles, who did not seek righteousness, received righteousness, righteousness from faith. But Israel, which sought the law of righteousness, did not reach the law of righteousness. Why? for [they sought] not in faith, but in the works of the law. For they have stumbled against a stumbling block" (Romans 9:30-32). This means that the unbelief of the Jews was the cause of evil for them, and unbelief came from arrogance. At first they had more than the Gentiles, namely, they received the law, had the knowledge of God, and so on, as Paul speaks. But after the coming of Christ, as soon as they saw that both they and the Gentiles were equally called to salvation by faith, and that in the matter of faith the circumcised had no advantage over the convert from the Gentiles, then they passed from pride to envy and could not endure the Lord's great and ineffable love for mankind. And this happened in them from nothing else but arrogance, anger and misanthropy.

2. What harm has this care (of the Lord) done to you, most senseless of men, done to others? Have your benefits diminished by the fact that others have participated in them? But truly anger is blind and cannot soon understand anything just. Tormented by the thought that others would share in the same rights, they turned the sword on themselves and deprived themselves of God's love for mankind. But justice demanded it. It is said: "Friend! I do not offend you, but I want to give this last one [the same] as I do to you" (Matt. 20:13,14). But they are not worth even these words. The hireling (mentioned in the Gospel), although vexed, could at least point out his labors during the whole day, the hardship, heat and sweat; What could they say? Nothing; in them there was only carelessness, intemperance, and a multitude of vices, of which all the prophets constantly denounced them, and with which they, as well as the pagans, offended God. Pointing to this, Paul said: "There is no difference" between Jew and Greek. "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely according to His grace" (Romans 3:23,24). But this subject is usefully and very wisely expounded by the Apostle in a whole chapter of the Epistle. And before that, he also shows that the Jews are even more worthy of punishment: "Those who have sinned under the law," he says, "will be condemned according to the law" (Romans 2:12), i.e. the judgment is more severe, since, in addition to nature, they have the law as an accuser. And not only because of this, but also because they were the cause of blasphemy against God among the pagans. "For your sake," it is said, "the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles" (Isaiah 52:5; Romans 2:22).

And so, knowing that this especially wounded them, the apostle directs everything to destroy their pride and suppress their too haughty arrogance. And see how he does this: after discourse on the Gentiles, having shown that they have no justification in anything, nor hope of salvation, and having carefully denounced also their perverse teaching and the impurity of their lives, he transfers his word to the Jews. After repeating all that the prophet said about them – that they are criminal, and deceitful, and deceitful, and that all are useless in general, and not one of them seeks God, but all have deviated, and so on – the Apostle adds: "We know that the law, if it speaks, speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth is stopped, and the whole world becomes guilty before God. For all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:19,23). Why do you exalt yourself, Jew? Why do you think a lot about yourself? Your mouth is stopped, your self-confidence is destroyed, and you are subject to judgment along with the whole world, and, like others, have need of justification. Therefore, even though you were right according to the law and had much boldness before God, you should not envy those who could be pardoned and saved by God's love for mankind. It is extremely bad to be upset by the well-being of others, and especially when it is not combined with damage to yourself. If the salvation of others were to harm your well-being, you would have reason to be grieved, although even this is not characteristic of a man who has learned to be wise. But if neither the punishment of others multiplies your rewards, nor does prosperity diminish them, why do you torment yourself, only because another is saved? As I have said, you should not have been irritated by the fact that salvation had been granted to the Gentiles by grace, even though you yourself were one of the people worthy of approval. But when you, being guilty of the same thing (as a heathen) before the Lord, and having incurred His wrath upon yourself, are still vexed at the well-being of others, and think so much of yourself as if you alone had a right to the communion of grace, then you are subject more than all others to grievous torments, not only for envy and arrogance, but also for extreme recklessness. You have grown in yourself the root of all evil – arrogance. That is why one wise man said: "The beginning of sin is pride" (Sir. 10:15), i.e. the root, the source, the mother. Thus, through it, the primordial man was deprived of his blissful state; Through it, the devil who had deceived him fell from the height of his dignity. This abominable creature, learning that this sin could cast down from heaven itself, chose this path to deprive Adam of so great an honor. By puffing him up with the promise of equality with God, he thus overthrew him and threw him into the very depths of hell. Truly, nothing so alienates from the love of God and exposes to the fire of hell as the predominance of arrogance. When it is in us, then our whole life becomes impure, even if we strive in chastity, celibacy, fasting, prayers, almsgiving, and other virtues. "An abomination," it is said, "is everyone who is haughty in heart before the Lord" (Proverbs 16:5). Therefore, if we want to be pure and free from the punishment prepared for the devil, let us curb the arrogance of the spirit in ourselves, let us cut off arrogance. And that the proud must undergo the same punishment (with the devil) - listen to what Paul says about this: "He must not be of the new converts, lest he become proud and fall into condemnation with the devil" (1 Timothy 3:6). How to avoid this disaster? Let us avoid it if we reflect on our nature, on the multitude of sins, on the greatness of future torments, on the fact that everything that seems brilliant here is temporary, no better than grass and withers faster than spring flowers. If we often arouse such thoughts in ourselves and bring to mind people who have performed great feats, then the devil will not be able to easily puff us up, no matter how much he intensifies, he will not even be able to stumble us at the first steps. But may God, the God of the humble, good and merciful, Himself give you and us a contrite and humble heart. In this way, we will be able to easily accomplish all other things to the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom and with whom be glory to the Father and to the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen.

DISCOURSE 10