3. Therefore we, who have been vouchsafed such great mysteries, will show the life worthy of this gift, the best conduct. And you, who have not yet been vouchsafed them, act in all things in such a way that you may be vouchsafed, that we may all be one body, that we may all be brethren. As long as this divides us, so long as father, and son, and brother, and whoever it may be, is not yet our true kinsman, since he is far from the kinship above. And what is the use of being united by temporal kinship, when we are not united by spiritual kinship? What profit is there from intimacy on earth when we are strangers to each other in heaven? A catechumen is a stranger to the faithful. He has neither the same head, nor the same father, nor the same city, nor food, nor clothing, nor house; But everything is divided with them. One has everything on earth; for another, in heaven. For this one, Christ is the king; he has sin and the devil. For this one, the food is Christ; he has rot and decay. And this one's garment is the Lord of the angels; for him it is the work of worms. For this one, the city is the sky; he has the earth. And if we have nothing in common with the unbelievers, then tell me, in what way shall we have fellowship (with them)? Have we also gone through the same pangs of birth and come from the same womb? But this is not enough for the closest kinship. And so, let us try to become citizens of the city on high. How long shall we remain in a foreign land, then how shall we regain the ancient fatherland? Here the danger concerns not unimportant matters. If, God forbid, it should happen that an unexpected death should befall us, and we should depart from here without enlightenment,[2] then, even though we have a thousand blessings here, nothing else awaits us but hell, a poisonous worm, an inextinguishable fire, and insoluble bonds. But God forbid anyone who listens to suffer this punishment! And it will not befall us if, having been vouchsafed the Holy Mysteries, we lay gold, silver, and precious stones as the foundation of our building (Cor. 3:12). In this way we will have the opportunity, having gone there, to appear rich, when, i.e., we do not leave money here, but carry it to safe treasuries by the hands of the poor, when we lend it to Christ. We have a lot of debts there – not in money, but in sins. Let us give Him money in order to receive the forgiveness of sins. He is our Judge. Let us not despise Him here who hungers, so that He may also feed us there. Let us clothe Him here, so that He will not leave us naked without His covering. If we give Him to drink here, we will not say, like the rich, "Send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool our tongue" (Luke 16:24). If we also receive Him here into our homes, then He will prepare many mansions for us there. If we come to Him in prison, then He has freed us from bonds. If we bring Him to us as a stranger, He will not leave us to wander outside the kingdom of heaven, but will reward us for this in the heavenly city. Therefore, when we receive much, even when we give a little, let us give at least a little in order to gain much. While there is still time, we will sow to reap. When winter comes, when it is no longer possible to sail on the sea, then this purchase will no longer be in our power. And when will winter come? Then when that great and glorious day comes. Then we will no longer sail on this great and vast sea, which is like real life. Now is the time for sowing; And then – the time of harvest and gathering. If someone did not throw seed at the time of sowing, but began to sow at the time of harvest, he would be ridiculous except that he would receive nothing. If the present time is the time of sowing, then now it is not necessary to gather, but to scatter. Let us scatter in order to gather; let us not gather now, lest we lose the harvest. This time, as I have said, calls for sowing, for dependency and waste, and not for gathering and saving. Therefore, let us not lose the convenient time, but let us make abundant sowing and spare nothing of our own, so that we may receive back with great recompense, according to the grace and love of mankind our Lord Jesus Christ, with Whom be glory to the Father with the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen.

[1] That is, the sacraments of holy baptism

[2] Of course, baptism.

DISCOURSE 26

"That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit" (John 3:6)

1. The Only-begotten Son of God vouchsafed us great mysteries, great and such which we were not worthy, but which He pleased us to communicate. If we talk about our worthiness, then we were not only unworthy of this gift, but were guilty of punishment and torment. But in spite of this, He not only freed us from punishment, but also gave us a life that is much brighter than before; He led into another world; created a new creature. "Whosoever," it is said, "is in Christ, a new creature" (2 Corinthians 5:17). What kind of new creature is this? Listen to what Christ Himself says: "Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God" (John 3:5). Paradise was entrusted to us; but when we have proved unworthy to dwell in it, He raises us up to heaven itself. We have not remained faithful in the original gifts; but He communicates to us even more. We could not abstain from one tree – and He gives us food above. We did not stand in paradise – He opens the heavens to us. Paul rightly says: "O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God" (Romans 11:33)! There is no longer any need for a mother, nor the pangs of childbirth, nor sleep, nor cohabitation and carnal union; the structure of our nature is accomplished from above, by the Holy Spirit and by water. And water is used as the birthplace of the one who is born. As the womb is to the infant, so is water to the faithful: he is conceived and formed in the water. It was said before: "Let the water bring forth creeping things, a living soul" (Gen. 1:20). And from the time when the Lord descended into the streams of the Jordan, the water no longer produces "creeping things, a living soul," but rational and spirit-bearing souls. And what is said about the sun: "He goes out like a bridegroom out of his bridal chamber" (Psalm 18:6), it is now more appropriate to say about the faithful: they emit rays much more brilliant than the sun's. But the infant conceived in the womb takes time; but in water it is not so: here everything is done in an instant. Where life is temporary, and derives its beginning from bodily corruption, there also birth takes place slowly: such is the nature of bodies; they are perfected only with the passage of time. But in spiritual matters it is not so. Why? Here, what is done is done from the very beginning. But as Nicodemus, hearing this, was constantly perplexed, then – see how Christ reveals to him the incomprehensibility of this mystery and makes clear what is unclear to him. Christ says: "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit." He distracts Nicodemus from everything sensual and does not allow him to view this mystery with his bodily eyes. We do not talk about the flesh, Nicodemus, but about the spirit, turning it with these words to the things above. Do not seek (here) anything sensual. The spirit cannot be seen with these eyes. Do not think that the Spirit gives birth to flesh.

And how, someone may ask, was the flesh of the Lord born? She was born not only of the Spirit, but also of the flesh. That is why Paul, showing this, says: "He was born of a woman, he was subject to the law" (Gal. 4:4). The Spirit formed her thus: not from nothing (why would a mother's womb be needed in this case?), but from virgin flesh; but in what way I cannot explain. This was so that no one would think that the Born One is alien to our nature. If even after this there are people who do not believe in such a birth, then to what wickedness would they have stooped if Christ had not received flesh from the Virgin? "That which is born of the Spirit is spirit." Do you see the dignity of the Spirit? He does the work of God. Above (the Evangelist) said: "They were born of God" (John 1:13); but here it is said that they are born of the Spirit. "That which is born of the Spirit is spirit," and that which is born of the Spirit is spiritual. Birth here is of course not in essence, but in dignity and grace. And if the Son is begotten in the same way, what advantage will He have over people who are so born? In what way is He then the Only-begotten Son? I am also born of God, but not of His essence. If He is not born of a being, then how does He differ from us? In this case, He will be less even than the Spirit, because such a birth comes from the grace of the Spirit. Is it possible, therefore, that in order to be the Son, He needs the assistance of the Spirit? And how does such a thought differ from the teachings of the Jews? But having said: "That which is born of the Spirit is spirit," Christ again saw that Nicodemus was confused, and therefore turned his speech to a sensual example. "Do not be surprised," says He, "that I have said to you, You must be born again. The Spirit breathes where it will" (vv. 7-8). By saying, "That which is born of the Spirit is spirit," Christ was already distracting Nicodemus from carnal notions; but as he still did not understand the meaning of His words, "That which is born of the Spirit is spirit," He transferred his thought to another image, not stopping at gross bodies, nor speaking of beings wholly incorporeal (for Nicodemus, even hearing of such things, could not comprehend them), but finding something between a corporeal being and an incorporeal being, - the movement of the wind, - and through this it admonishes him. It is of the wind that He says, "Thou hearest its voice, but knowest not whence it cometh and whither it goeth." But if he says: "The spirit breathes where it will"[1], he does not thereby express that the wind has any arbitrariness, but only indicates its natural movement, an unhindered and strong movement. Scripture usually speaks in this way about inanimate objects, for example: "The creation was not subjected to vanity of its own free will" (Romans 8:20). Thus the words "breathe where it will" mean that the wind is unrestrained, that it spreads everywhere, that no one can hinder it from rushing hither and thither, but that it is dispersed with great force, and no one can hinder its striving.

2. "And thou hearest his voice," that is, a roar, a noise, "but thou knowest not whence it cometh and whither it goeth: so it is with every one that is born of the Spirit." That's what it's all about. If, he says, you do not know how to explain either the outcome or the direction of the wind, which you nevertheless feel both by hearing and touching, then why do you strive to understand the action of the Spirit of God, who do not understand the action of the wind, although you hear its sounds? Thus the words "breathe where he will" are spoken to signify the power of the Comforter, and mean this: if no one can restrain the wind, but rushes where he will, how much more can neither the laws of nature, nor the conditions of bodily birth, nor anything else of the kind restrain the actions of the Spirit. And that the words, "Thou hearest his voice," are spoken specifically of the wind, is evident from the fact that Christ, speaking to an unbeliever and ignorant of the work of the Spirit, would not have said, "Thou hearest his voice." Therefore, just as we do not see the wind, although it makes a noise, so invisible to the bodily eyes is the spiritual birth. But the wind is still a body, albeit the subtlest, because everything that is subject to feeling is a body. But if you are not vexed that you do not see this body, and therefore do not deny its existence, why are you troubled when you hear about the Spirit, and at the same time demand such distinctness, while not doing the same with regard to the body?

What about Nicodemus? In spite of such a clear example presented to him, he still remains with Jewish weakness. And so, when he again asks in perplexity, "How can this be," Christ says to him the words even more striking: "Thou art the teacher of Israel, and knowest not this" (v. 10)? Note that he does not accuse this man of malice, but of short-sightedness and simplicity.

And the pronouncements of the prophets will mark this form of birth; thus it is written: "[My descendants] shall serve Him, and shall be called the Lord's for ever: they shall come and declare His righteousness to men who shall be born, which the Lord has made" (Psalm 21:31,32); again: "Thy youth is renewed like an eagle" (Psalm 102:5); also: "shine, O [Jerusalem]" (Isaiah 60:1); "Behold, thy King cometh" (Zech. 9:9); or: "Blessed is he to whom iniquity is forgiven" (Psalm 31:1). But Isaac was also a type of this birth. Indeed, tell me, Nicodemus, how was Isaac born? Is it according to the law of nature? No! But the image of his birth was intermediate between the one and the other birth (carnal and spiritual): in him there was both a carnal birth, because he was born of cohabitation, and a spiritual one, because he was not born of blood. I will prove that these images foreshadowed not only this birth, but also the birth of the Virgin. Since it would not be easy to believe that the Virgin gives birth, barren women gave birth first, and not only barren, but also aged women. Of course, the birth of a woman from a rib is much more surprising than the birth of a barren woman; but, since this was in the beginning, a long time ago, there followed another, new and recent way of being born, namely from barren ones, in order to pave the way for the belief in being born of a virgin. Recalling this to Nicodemus, Christ says: "Thou art the teacher of Israel, and knowest not this? Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak of what we know, and bear witness of what we have seen, but ye receive not our testimony" (vv. 10-11). He added the last words, again assuring, on the other hand, the truth of His words, and at the same time condescending to the weakness of Nicodemus.

3. What does it mean, "We speak of what we know, and bear witness of what we have seen"? And with us sight is more certain than the other senses: therefore, when we want to assure someone, we say that we have seen with our own eyes, and do not know by hearing. In the same way, Christ converses with Nicodemus in a human way, borrowing from this also the confirmation of His words. And that this is so, and that Christ does not want to show Nicodemus anything else, and does not mean sensual sight here, is evident from the following. Having said, "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit," He adds, "We speak of what we know, and bear witness of what we have seen." But that wasn't the case at that time. How then does He say, "What have you seen"? Is it not evident that He is speaking of the most accurate and infallible knowledge? "But ye receive not Our testimony." Thus the words, "What we know," He speaks either of Himself and together of the Father, or only of Himself. And the words: "but you do not accept" do not express indignation in the present case, but express what happened. He did not say, "Is it possible to be more insensible than you, who do not accept what we proclaim with such accuracy?" No, He said nothing of the kind, showing perfect meekness both in word and in deed. He meekly and quietly foretells what is to come to pass; In the same way, He encourages us to meekness, so that when we converse with someone and do not persuade, we do not become annoyed or irritated. An irritated person not only cannot do anything, but also makes others even more distrustful. Therefore, it is necessary to refrain from anger, and in your words to convince others not only not by anger, but also not by shouting, since shouting is the food of anger. Let us bridle this horse in order to overthrow the rider; let us clip the wings of wrath, and evil will not rise high. Anger is a cruel and dangerous disease because it can destroy our souls. Therefore, it is necessary to block his entrance from everywhere. It is incongruous if we can tame beasts, and leave our raging thoughts unattended. Anger is a strong, all-consuming fire; it harms the body, and corrupts the soul, and makes a person look unpleasant and shameful. If an angry man could see himself in the time of his anger, he would no longer need any other exhortation, for there is nothing more disagreeable than the face of an irritated person. Anger is a kind of intoxication, or, rather, worse than intoxication and more miserable than a demon. But let us only try not to shout, and we ourselves will find the best way of wisdom. That is why Paul inspires us to suppress not only anger, but also shouting, saying: "Let all anger and wrath and wrath and cry be removed from you" (Ephesians 4:31). Let us obey this teacher of wisdom, and when we are angry with the servants, let us think of our own sins and be ashamed of their meekness. When you scold him, he silently endures the abuse; In this way you are outrageous, and he is inquisitive. Accept this instead of any exhortation. Though he is a servant, he is a man who has an immortal soul, and is adorned with gifts like us from the common Lord.

Amen.

[1] One of the translations is: "The wind blows where it will."

CONVERSATION 27