SECOND WORD. The advantages given by holy baptism. A baptized person is called faithful because he believes in God and God gives him purity and holiness of soul, adoption and the kingdom of heaven. - Duties imposed by baptism. - The meaning of the words: "I renounce Satan." It is necessary to renounce not only Satan, but also all his deceptions, such as the theater, the circus, the superstitious observation of the days, charms, and similar abominations, which a person who has accepted the teaching of Jesus Christ should avoid.

III. Discourses on the Impotence of the Devil.

FIRST CONVERSATION. Praise for the diligence of the listeners, even for lengthy conversations. - On Divine Providence. - It is not God who deprives us of his gifts, but we ourselves lose them. "We have received the best of gifts, eternal bliss. - God always cares for our welfare. - An example of this is the confusion of languages, which also served for the good of people. - On moral and physical evil, the difference between them: the latter serves as a remedy for the former. - What would the devils do if peace were given to them. - Why is it that of two evil people, one is punished and the other is not? An admonition that one should not blame God's Providence.

SECOND CONVERSATION. Greetings to Bishop Flavian, who was present at the conversation. - Return to the previous item. - Why wasn't the devil destroyed? - The destruction of the devil would diminish the merit of the Christians. - Anger does not come from nature, but from the evil use that a person makes of his freedom. - While everything serves for the benefit of a well-intentioned person, everything harms him who does not want good. - The latter abuses everything - creation, his body, the cross, the apostolic preaching. - Jesus Christ Himself, being the light of the world, blinds weak souls. - One must constantly be vigilant over oneself - whether in youth or in old age. - Different ways of repentance. (Corrections - Lyudmila Zhmurina, St. Petersburg)

THIRD CONVERSATION. There were two classes of people: some listened to a conversation about the devil's deceit, while others were in the theater at the same time to enjoy the temptations of the devil. - What does this difference come from? - From the will of both, because only the will makes us either virtuous or vicious. - If we have good will, then even the devil will serve us instead of harming. - That is why God did not destroy the devil and why He allows both the good and the evil to live together. "Therefore it is only our will that makes us guilty, and this truth is proved by the parable of the ten virgins, by the repentance of the Ninevites, by the fall of Adam, and by the triumph of Job. Final exhortation. (Corrections - Lyudmila Zhmurina, St. Petersburg)

IV. Discourses on Repentance.

FIRST CONVERSATION. The preacher's love for his listeners. - Despair and negligence are equally dangerous. - Satan and Judas perished from these two shortcomings. Humble hope saved Ap. Paul, the publican, the Ninevites. - In the Corinthian fornicator Ap. Paul is more afraid of despair than of sin itself. - Further development of this idea and confirmation of its stories of the prodigal son. (Corrections - Lyudmila Zhmurina, St. Petersburg)

SECOND CONVERSATION. The sinner should not despair. - If Cain did not receive forgiveness, it is for despair. - If David received forgiveness, it was because of his hope and for the fulfillment of what the prophet said to him. - Confess your sin is the first way of repentance. - The example of Ahab in the case of Naboth's vineyard. - Jonah and the Ninevites. - The third way of repentance is humility. - The example of the Pharisee and the publican. - Humility of Ap. Paul. - Exhortation to the audience. (Corrections - Lyudmila Zhmurina, St. Petersburg)

THIRD CONVERSATION. An overview of the previous discourse on the three paths of repentance. - The fourth way is almsgiving. - Explanation of the parable of the ten virgins. - Without the oil of philanthropy, virginity cannot open heaven. - The power of almsgiving. - It will be the protection of those who make it on the Day of Judgment. - Continuation of the parable of the ten virgins. - The difficulty of virginity, unknown to the ancients. - Generalization and conclusion. (Corrections - Lyudmila Zhmurina, St. Petersburg)

CONVERSATION FOUR. The consolation of repentance. - The example of others as an encouragement to us in the matter of repentance. - The ease of doing virtue in adversity, and its difficulty in prosperity. - The saints do not lose heart in misfortune, do not puff up in happiness. - Christians should seek refuge not with people, but in the bosom of God. - If God allows us to suffer often, it is in order to encourage us to resort to Him.

CONVERSATION FIVE. Lent gathers us in the house of God and brings us into the arms of our mother Church. - He drives away demons, supports the virtue of hermits, brings Moses and Elijah into the presence of God. - Neglect of fasting brings a death sentence, through its observance this sentence is canceled. - The example of the Ninevites. "A three-day fast saved them. - Repentance cleanses sins over time. - An example of Ap. Peter. - By fasting Daniel got rid of the lions and the three youths from the fiery furnace. - Fasting is good even for health. -Conclusion.

SIXTH DISCOURSE. Introductory Remarks on the Large Number of Congregations. - Fasting does not benefit those who, while abstaining from food, do not at the same time abstain from sin. - It is useless to fast and at the same time attend spectacles. - A word against spectacles. - Staying in the theater - entails adultery. - Explanation of the saying: Whoever looks at a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. - The seeming difficulty of this saying. - God does not require anything impossible. - Both the old and the new law come from the same Lawgiver. - The proof of this is in Jeremiah. - In the Sermon on the Mount the laws of the Old and New Testaments are compared to show that they do not contradict each other, but complement each other.

SEVENTH DISCOURSE. Repentance as a healing remedy for sin. - The miraculous long-suffering of God towards sinners, proved by the fact that from the evil root can sometimes come good fruits. - The example of Job, descended from Esau. - The reason for long-suffering towards sinners is the hope for their correction. - For the good of all, God is often lenient with the sinner and strict with the righteous. - Repentance is achieved not by the length of time, but by the disposition of the heart. - Man is slow to create, quick to destroy - which is contrary to God. - God appointed seven days for the destruction of Jericho. - About Rahab as a repentant sinner and who became a prototype of the Church. - Sin begets sorrow, and sorrow destroys sin. - Whoever gives to the poor does God a favor.

CONVERSATION EIGHT. Like Noah's Ark, the church receives kites, wolves and snakes into its bowels; But while the ark released them the same as He received them, the church transforms them by repentance into doves, sheep, lambs. - Repentance will also benefit the one who has spent his whole life in sin. - God's mercy is boundless. - Man's sinfulness disappears in God's mercy, like a spark in the sea. - One should not be ashamed to resort to the church with repentance. - You need to be ashamed only of sin. - The devil inspires us with insolence to sin and shame to repentance. - The proof of this truth is in the Holy Scriptures. - Explanation of the first chapter from the book of the prophet Isaiah.