The full title of this word is as follows: "That silence and failure to communicate to others what we know makes us poorer and extinguishes grace; and of the prayers with which Christ prayed, and of the authority with which He did all things; and on the perfection of the Old Testament law; and that the Incarnation does not diminish the equality of the Son with the Father, but confirms it even more."

In the preceding days we have spoken enough eulogies, depicting the apostolic feats and enjoying the discourse on spiritual virtues: now is the time to repay you the debt, for there is nothing to hinder it. I know that you have already forgotten my debts by the passage of time; however, I will not conceal them for this reason, but will willingly give them to you. I do this not only out of gratitude, but also for my own benefit. In material contracts, it is beneficial for the debtor when the lender forgets about the debt; and in spiritual contracts it is of the greatest benefit to him who has to pay a debt that those who have received should constantly remember their debts. There, the debt being paid goes away from the giver and passes to the receiver, diminishes the property of the former and increases the property of the latter; but in spiritual matters it is not so: here it is possible to give away property and keep it, and, what is surprising, then we especially keep it when we give it to others. If I hide something in my soul and keep it constantly without telling anyone, then my benefit will be reduced, my wealth will decrease; but if I offer to all, and make many partakers and partakers of all that I know, then my spiritual wealth will increase. And that it is true that he who gives to others increases his possessions, and he who hides them is deprived of all that he has acquired, is testified by those to whom talents have been entrusted, to one five, to another two, to a third one. The former brought what was entrusted to them in double quantities, and for this they received honors; and the latter, having kept the talent for himself and not passing it on to anyone, could not double it, and for this he was punished. Therefore all of us, hearing this, and fearing punishment, will reveal to our brethren the good we have, and offer it to all, and not conceal it. When we begin to share with others, we ourselves will be more enriched; when we begin to make many partakers of our inheritance, then we will increase our own wealth.

Thus, bread, constantly remaining in granaries, spoils and is eaten by moths; but if it is brought out and sown in the fields, it is multiplied and renewed again. In the same way, the spiritual word, remaining constantly imprisoned in the soul, corrupted and consumed by envy, negligence and weakness, soon perishes; and if it is sown in the souls of the brethren, as in a fruitful field, it becomes a treasure multiplied many times both for those who receive it and for him who possesses it. so the spiritual gift and the word of edification, if those who desire to draw and borrow from it continually, flows more abundantly; and if it is delayed by envy and hatred, then it decreases and finally ceases. If, therefore, it is of so much use to us, I will now offer all that I have, and pay you the whole debt, reminding you in advance of the whole series of these debts.

2. You know and remember that earlier, when I spoke of the glory of the Only-begotten, I enumerated many reasons for condescension in His utterances, and said that Christ often spoke in a humiliating manner, not only as clothed with flesh, and not only because of the weakness of the hearers, but in many cases also in order to teach humility. These reasons I then sufficiently investigated, mentioning both the prayer at the resurrection of Lazarus and the prayer pronounced on the cross, and clearly showing that He performed the one for the assurance of His economy, and the other for the correction of the infirmity of His listeners, having no need of any help Himself. And that He did many things to teach people humility, listen to this further. He poured water into the laver, and not only that, but he girded himself with a towel, descending to the utmost humiliation; Then he began to wash the feet of the disciples, and together with the disciples he washed the feet of the traitor. Who will not be amazed and amazed at this? He washes the feet of the one who intended to betray Him. And Peter, who turned away and said, "You will never wash my feet," He does not go around, but says to him, "If I do not wash you" of your feet, "You have no part with Me," then Peter said, "Lord! not only my feet, but also my hands and head" (John 13:8-9). Do you see the reverence of the disciple in both, both in deviation and in agreement? Although there was a contradiction in his words, both were said out of a fiery spiritual disposition. Do you see how ardent and zealous he was always? But, I repeat, from the humiliated action you must not draw conclusions about the humiliation of His essence; listen to what He says to His disciples after washing: "Do you know what I have done to you? You call Me Teacher and Lord, and rightly so, for I am exactly that. Therefore, if I, the Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, then you also must wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that ye also should do as I have done unto one another" (John 13:12-15). Do you see that He did many things as an example to people? As a teacher full of wisdom babbles together with the babbling children, and this babbling is a sign not of the teacher's ignorance, but of his concern for the children; so Christ did this, not because of the imperfection of His being, but out of condescension. This should not be overlooked; for if we consider the matter by itself, then see what absurdity can be deduced. If the one who washes is considered inferior to the one whom he washes (Christ was the one who washed, and the disciples were the ones who were washed), then Christ will be inferior to the disciples; but no one, not even a madman, can say this. Do you see what an evil it is not to know the reasons why Christ did all that He did? Or rather, do you see what a blessing it is to examine everything carefully, and not only to look at what He has said or done that is humiliated, but also to delve into why and why this is so? And not only in this case did He do so, but in another He showed the same thing. Having said: "Who is greater, the one who reclines, or the one who serves?" He continued: "Is it not the one who reclines? But I am in your midst, as one who serves" (Luke 22:27). Thus He spoke and did in order to show that He had repeatedly humbled Himself for the edification of His disciples, and at the same time in order to dispose them to humility. Obviously, it was not because of the imperfection of His being, but for their edification, that He endured all this. And in another place He says: "The princes of the nations rule over them: but let it not be so among you: whoever wants to be first among you, let him be your servant. For the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve" (Matt. 20:25-28). Therefore, if he came to serve and teach humility, then do not be dismayed or amazed when you see him doing and speaking what is proper for servants. And many of His prayers He did with the same intention. They came to Him and said: "Lord! teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples" (Luke 11:1). What, tell me, was He to do? Not to teach them to pray? But He came to teach them all wisdom. Should he have been taught? In such a case, He should have prayed. It will be said: this should have been done only by word. But it is not so much instruction in words as in deeds that usually affects the disciples. For this reason, He not only teaches them prayer with words, but He Himself often prays and prays all night long in the wilderness, admonishing and teaching us, so that when we intend to converse with God, we should avoid the noise and confusion of people and withdraw into the wilderness, not only because of the terrain, but also because of all circumstances. A desert can be not only a mountain, but also a small room, remote from noise.

3. In order that you may be convinced that his prayer was a matter of condescension, I have made a special reference to what happened to Lazarus; but the same is evident from other cases. Why does He pray not at great miracles, but at lesser ones? If He had prayed out of need of help and lack of sufficient strength in Himself, then He should have prayed and asked the Father for all miracles, and if not for all, then at least for the greatest. But He does the opposite: He does not pray in the most important matters, and by this He shows that when He prayed, He did it not because He Himself did not have the power, but in order to teach others; thus, when He blessed the loaves, He looked up to heaven and prayed that He might teach us not to touch the table without first thanking the Creator of the fruits, God. In raising many dead, He did not pray, but prayed only at the resurrection of Lazarus. We have already said the reason for this: He wanted to correct the weakness of those who were present, of which He Himself said clearly, adding: "He said [this] for the people standing here" (John 11:42). I explained enough then that it was not prayer, but His proclamation that raised this dead man; but in order that you may understand this better, pay attention to what follows. When it was necessary to punish, or to reward, or to forgive sins, or to establish a law, or when it was necessary to do something of great importance, you will nowhere find Him calling upon the Father and praying, but He did all this by His own authority. I will list all these things in order, and you carefully observe that He never needed prayer. "Come," He said, "ye blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world" (Matt. 25:34); and again: "Depart from me, you cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels" (Matt. 25:41). Behold, He Himself punishes and rewards with full authority, and does not need any prayer. Likewise, when it was necessary to heal the body of the paralytic, He says: "Take up your bed and walk" (Mark 2:9); when it was necessary to deliver from death: "Virgin, I say to you, arise" (Mark 5:41); When it was necessary to free from sins: "Be of good cheer, child! thy sins are forgiven thee" (Matt. 9:2); when it was necessary to cast out demons: "He said to him, Come out, O unclean spirit, out of this man" (Mark 5:8); when it was necessary to tame the sea: "Be still, be still" (Mark 4:39); when it was necessary to cleanse the leper: "I will, be cleansed" (Matt. 8:3); when the law was to be established: "Ye have heard that it was said to them of old time, Thou shalt not kill: but I say unto you, Whosoever shall say to his brother, 'Thou fool,' shall be liable to hell fire" (Matt. 5:21-22).

And in order that you may understand what a great thing it is to forgive sins, I will bring you a prophet as a witness; no one else, says the prophet, has this in common, except God alone: "Who is God like Thee, who forgives iniquity, and does not impute transgression" (Micah 7:18)? Although it is much more important to lead into the kingdom than to deliver from death, Christ did this with authority. And to make laws is not the business of the subordinates, but of the rulers; the very nature of things testifies to this: it is only in the nature of kings to decree laws; this is also expressed by the Apostle in the following words: "Concerning virginity I have not the command of the Lord, but I give counsel, as one who has received mercy from the Lord" (1 Cor. 7:25). Since he was a slave and a servant, he did not dare to add anything to what had been decreed from the beginning. But Christ does not act in this way: with great authority He enumerates the ancient laws and introduces His own. If, however, it is peculiar only to the king's power to make laws, and He is not only the one who decrees the laws, but also the one who corrects the ancients, then what excuse is left for those who wish to be shameless? From this it can be seen that Christ is of one essence with the Parent.

4. But in order that what I am speaking of may be made clearer, let us turn to the very words of the Scriptures. Having ascended the mountain, it is said there, Christ sat down and began to say to all around Him: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, meek, merciful, pure in heart" (Matthew ch. 5). Then, after these beatitudes, He says: "Do not think that I have come to destroy the law or the prophets: I have not come to destroy, but to fulfill" (Matt. 5:17). Who suspected this? Why does He say that? Was what He said the opposite of what He said before? "Blessed," He says, "are the poor in spirit," i.e., the humble-minded; but the Old Testament also said this: "Sacrifice to God is a broken spirit; Thou shalt not despise a contrite and humble heart, O God" (Psalm 50:19). Again, "Blessed are the meek," and this is also proclaimed by Isaiah when he speaks from the presence of God: "But on whom will I look: on him who is humble and contrite in spirit, and on him who trembles at My word" (Isaiah 66:2)? "Blessed are the merciful"; and this has also often been repeated: "Do not deny food to the poor," says (the Most Wise), "do not refuse the oppressed who beg for help" (Sir. 4:1,4), and everywhere much is said about love for mankind. "Blessed are the pure in heart"; Likewise, David says: "Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me" (Psalm 50:12). If anyone reviews the other beatitudes, he will find a great agreement with them (with the Old Testament). Why, then, did Christ, without saying anything contrary to the former, add: "Do not think that I have come to destroy the law or the prophets"? He refers this reservation not to what was said, but to what still had to be said. Since He wanted to strengthen the commandments, so that they would not think that this strengthening is a refutation and the addition is a contradiction, He said: "Do not think that I have come to destroy the law or the prophets," i.e. I want to say something more perfect than what was said before, such as: "They have heard, Do not kill; but I say unto you, Be not angry: ye have heard, Thou shalt not commit adultery; but I say unto you, that whosoever looketh upon a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery," and so forth (Matt. 5:21-22, 27-28). Therefore, do not think that perfection is a violation; it is not a violation, but a replenishment; and what He did with the bodies, He also does with the law. What did He do with the bodies? When He came, He found many limbs damaged and deficient in everything; He corrected them and restored them to their proper decorum, showing everyone by His deeds that He Himself established the ancient laws and created our nature. And that Christ wanted to show this is evident especially from the healing of the blind man. Passing by and seeing a certain blind man, He made a clay, anointed the blind eyes with this clay and said to him: "Go and wash in the pool of Siloam" (John 9:7).

Then, so that you may know that it was not the use of mortality that helped Him to give sight to the blind, but that even without matter He could have created these eyes by a single command, He adds: "Go," he says, "wash in the pool of Siloam." Having shown us by the very way of working miracles, Who in the beginning created man, He then says to the blind man: "Go and wash in Siloam." As an excellent sculptor, wishing to show his art in practice, leaves a certain part of it unfinished in the manufacture of a statue, in order to present in this part a proof of his art in the construction of the whole statue, so Christ, wishing to show that He, having created the whole man Himself, left this (blind) imperfect, in order that, having come and given him eyes, by this part He might inspire us with faith in relation to the whole. And see with what part of the body He did this: not with the hand and the foot, but with the eyes, the most beautiful and necessary of our members, more precious than which we have no member. And whoever could create the most beautiful and necessary member, i.e., the eyes, is obviously able to create a hand, a foot, and other members. Oh, how blessed are those eyes that became the object of spectacle for all those present, attracted everyone to themselves, and by their beauty preached, announcing to all those present the power of Christ! Truly, it was a wondrous event: the blind man taught the sighted to see. Expressing this, Christ said: "I have come into this world for judgment, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind" (John 9:39). Oh, blessed blindness! The eyes, which the blind man did not receive from nature, he received from grace, and he was not so much harmed by delay (in receiving eyes) as he was benefited by the way they were made. What can be more amazing than those eyes that immaculate and holy hands have vouchsafed to create? And what happened to the barren woman happened here. How she did not suffer any harm from long barrenness, but became more glorious, having received a son not according to the laws of nature, but according to the laws of grace (Gen. 16:1; Luke 1:7); so the blind man did not suffer any harm from the previous blindness, but also received the greatest benefit from it, being vouchsafed first to behold the Sun of righteousness, and then the visible Sun.

5. I say this so that we may not be grieved when we see ourselves or others in misfortune. If we endure everything that happens with gratitude and courage, then every misfortune will certainly have a good end for us and be accompanied by many blessings. But I began to say that just as Christ corrected bodies that were defective, so the law, which was found to be imperfect, He arranged, transformed, and made better. However, when no one hears of the imperfection of the law, let no one think that I am judging the Lawgiver. That law is imperfect not in its essence, but has become imperfect in the course of time; at the time when it was given, it was very perfect and suitable for those who received it; and when the human race, guided by it, became better, the law became less perfect, not in its essence, but because of the moral perfection of those taught by it.

Therefore, Christ came and offered us another, more perfect thing. And see with what wisdom He enumerates the ancient laws and proposes new ones. "They have heard," He says, "that it was said to them of old time, Thou shalt not kill" (Matt. 5:21). Tell me, then, by whom is it "spoken"? Have you said this, or is it your Father? But He doesn't say that. Why then did He keep silent and did not name the one who spoke (the lawgiver), but impersonally brought the law? For if He had said, "It would have been said, Thou shalt not kill; but I say unto you, Be not angry;' His words would have seemed disagreeable through the foolishness of their hearers, who could not yet understand that He did not propose His laws to destroy the former, but to supplement them. And they would have said to him, What sayest thou? Thy Father said, Thou shalt not kill, and Thou sayest, Thou shalt not be angry? And so, lest anyone should think that He was opposed to the Father, or as if He was proposing something wiser than that given by Him (the Lawgiver), He did not say, "We have heard from the Father." On the other hand, if He had said, "They have heard," as I spoke to the ancients; then even this would have seemed intolerable no less than the first. If, when He said, "Before Abraham was, I am" (John 8:58), they intended to stone Him, what would they not have done if He had added that He had given the law to Moses? For this reason He did not mention Himself or the Father, but vaguely said: "They have heard that it was said to them of old time, Thou shalt not kill." As He dealt with bodies, by correcting their defects, instilling in His hearers also Who in the beginning created man; so he does here, too, by correcting the law and supplementing what is lacking, suggesting that He who in the beginning also gave the law. Therefore, when He spoke about the creation of man, He did not mention Himself or the Father, but even there He expressed Himself impersonally and indefinitely, saying: "He who created male and female in the beginning created them" (Matt. 19:4); in words He was silent about the Creator, but in deeds He pointed to Him, correcting bodily defects. So here, having said, "They have heard what was said to them of old time," He was silent about Who said it, but by His very deeds He pointed to Himself; for He who corrected the defects produced man in the beginning. But He reckons the ancient laws in order that the hearers may understand by comparison that what He says does not involve contradiction, and that He has the same authority as the Parent. The Jews also understood this and were amazed. And that they were amazed at this, listen, as the Evangelist testifies: "He was amazed," he says, "for He taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes and Pharisees" (Matt. 7:28-29). But what, they say, if they thought it wrong? However, Christ did not condemn them or reproach them, but confirmed their opinion. And soon afterwards the leper came and said, "Lord! if thou wilt, thou canst cleanse me" (Matt. 8:2), then what does He say? "I will, be cleansed" (Matt. 8:3). Why did He not simply say, "Be cleansed," although the leper had already testified that He had authority to do so, saying, "If you will"? Lest you think that the words, "If thou wilt," constitute the opinion of the leper, Christ Himself added, "I will, be cleansed." In this way, He deliberately everywhere showed His authority and that He does everything on His own; otherwise, if it were not so, these words would be superfluous.

6. Thus we have understood from all this the authority of Christ, but if we see that on other occasions He did and said something humble, both for the reasons we have previously enumerated, and because He wanted to dispose His hearers to humility, we shall not therefore attribute to Him a humiliated nature. He allowed the very assumption of the flesh out of humility, and not because He was inferior to the Father. Where does this come from? The enemies of the truth divulge this also, and say: if Christ is equal to the Parent, then why did not the Father take on the flesh, and the Son put on the image of a servant? Is it not obvious because He is inferior to the Father? But if, therefore, He had clothed Himself with our nature, then the Spirit, whom they themselves consider to be less than the Son (and we do not say this), would have to be incarnated. If the Father is greater than the Son, because the one was incarnate and the other was not, then the Spirit would be greater than the Son for the same reason, since He also did not take flesh. However, in order that we may not prove it by inferences, let us now confirm this by the Scriptures themselves and show that Christ took flesh out of humility. Paul, who knows this exactly, wishing to inspire us with something useful, gives us examples of virtue from above: for example, repeatedly giving advice about love and wishing to dispose his disciples to mutual love, he cites Christ as an example and says: "Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church" (Ephesians 5:25). Likewise, when he speaks of mercy, he does the same thing: "You know," he says, "the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that when he was rich, he became poor for your sake, that you might be enriched by his poverty" (2 Corinthians 8:9). The meaning of his words is as follows: As thy Lord was impoverished, having clothed himself with flesh, so thou shalt also be impoverished by money; and just as the poverty of glory did not harm Him in the least, so the poverty of money cannot harm you, but will bring you great wealth. Likewise, speaking to the Philippians, He cites Christ as an example, and having said: "In humility consider one another to be superior to yourselves," He adds: "For in you must have the same feelings as in Christ Jesus, He, being in the image of God, did not consider it a robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no value, taking the form of a servant" (Phil. 2:3,5-7). And if Christ had been pleased to take on the flesh because He was essentially inferior to the Father, then this would no longer have been a matter of humility, and in vain would Paul have pointed this out when teaching humility; for humility occurs when an equal obeys an equal. Expressing this, the Apostle says: "He, being in the image of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal to God, but humbled Himself, taking the form of a servant." What does it mean: "He did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but humbled Himself, taking the form of a servant"? He who steals something that does not belong to him constantly keeps what he has stolen with him and does not dare to put it aside, fearing and apprehension for the acquisition; but he who possesses the inalienable good does not fear to lay it aside.

And the son will not refuse to do any slavish work, knowing that even if he begins to perform all the slave services, his freedom will not suffer any harm, but will remain unchanged, since natural nobility cannot be destroyed by slavish deeds; it was acquired by him not by theft, as a slave, but by him from the first day. In explaining this, Paul also says of Christ, that He, being essentially the free and true Son of the Father, was not afraid to postpone it, as if by theft He had arrogated to Himself equality with Him, but boldly took on the form of a servant. Christ knew, and knew for sure, that humiliation could not diminish His glory in the least; for it was not borrowed, not acquired by theft, not alien or uncharacteristic of Him, but natural and true. For this reason He took the form of a servant, with clear knowledge and confidence that this could not harm Him in the least. This did not harm Him, but in the form of a servant He dwelt with the same glory. Do you see how the very assumption of the flesh serves as a proof that the Son is equal to the Parent, and that this equality is not borrowed, not coming and going, but unchanging and permanent, and such as the Son should have in relation to the Father?

7. Let us, therefore, say all this to the heretics, and try, as far as it depends on us, to divert them from the evil heresy and to turn them to the truth. And we ourselves will not consider faith alone sufficient for us to be saved, but we will also take care of our behavior, let us lead the best possible life, so that both may contribute us to the attainment of perfection. To what I exhorted before, to the fulfillment of the same I exhort now: let us cease enmity among ourselves, and let no one remain an enemy of his neighbor for more than one day, but let him tame his anger until nightfall, lest, being left alone and carefully remembering what has been done and said in enmity, it will not make its cessation more difficult and reconciliation more inconvenient.

Usually, not only the sight of those who have offended us, but also the memory of them constantly irritates us; and if we hear another say something about them, we raise our voices, and in general spend our whole lives in despondency and grief, doing more harm to ourselves than to our enemies, and having in our hearts a constant struggle.