"And Noah built an altar to the Lord; and he took of every clean beast, and of every clean bird, and offered it for a burnt offering on the altar" (Gen. 8:20).

1. Yesterday we saw the goodness of the loving Lord, how He brought the righteous out of the ark, freed him from his stay in it, delivered him from this heavy and terrible imprisonment, and rewarded him for his patience, saying: "Let them be fruitful and multiply" (Gen. 8:17). Today let us look at Noah's appreciation and gratitude, by which he gained for himself an even greater and higher favor of God. This is what God always does: when He sees someone grateful for the past, He sends down even greater gifts to him. Let us also try to offer up to the Lord all possible gratitude for the blessings granted to us by Him, so that we may be worthy of even greater ones; and let us never forget the blessings of God that have been shown to us, but let us always keep them in our minds, so that the remembrance of them may prompt us to constant gratitude, although they are so numerous that our mind is not able even to count God's mercies to us. For who can even imagine all that has already been given to you (from God), that is promised, that is given every day? He brought us from non-existence into existence, gave us both body and soul, created us (beings) rational, gave us this air to breathe, arranged all creation for the human race, and first willed that man should enjoy his sojourn in paradise, lead his life without sorrow and without any labor, and, being in the body, in no way inferior to angels and incorporeal powers, but he was above the needs of the body. Then, when (man), through carelessness, was caught by the flattery of the devil through the serpent, (God) did not cease to do good to the criminal sinner, but in the very punishments, as I said yesterday, He showed the abundance of His love for mankind and showed him manifold and innumerable blessings. Finally, when, after the multiplication of the human race in the following time and its deviation into wickedness, God saw that the wounds were incurable, He destroyed those who do evil, as if it were some harmful leaven, leaving this righteous man (Noah) to become the root and firstfruits of the human race. And see again what benevolence he has. From this righteous man and from his sons He was pleased to multiply the human race to such a great number, gradually He chose the righteous, i.e. the patriarchs, and appointed them for the rest of the people as teachers who could edify everyone with their virtues and, like doctors, heal the sick. He leads them now to Palestine, now to Egypt, thereby exercising the patience of his servants, and at the same time revealing his own strength more clearly; and constantly afterwards he continued to take care of the salvation of people, sending prophets, and through them performing signs and wonders. To put it briefly, just as the waves of the sea we can never enumerate, even if we have taken up this task a thousand times, so (we cannot count) the various blessings of God that He has shown to our race. Finally, when (God) saw that, even after such a providence, human nature still had need of a great and ineffable love for mankind, and that neither the patriarchs nor the prophets, nor those marvelous miracles, nor the punishments and suggestions, so often repeated, nor those captivities that continually followed one another, then, as if having compassion on our race, He sent to us a physician of souls and bodies, having raised, so to speak, from the bosom of the fathers His Only-begotten Son, Who was pleased to take the form of a servant (Phil. 2:7) and to be born of a Virgin, to live with us and to endure all our (needs), so that our nature, which lies down from a multitude of sins, might be raised from earth to heaven. Wondering at this, and imagining the excessiveness of God's love for the human race, the son of thunder exclaimed: "For God so loved the world" (John 3:16). See what wonder is expressed in this saying! The word "so" indicates the importance of what he wants to say; That is why he began this way. Tell us, then, blessed John, how is it so? Show us the measure, show us greatness, reveal the excellence (of God's love). "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." Who can grasp in thought the great, wondrous, and incomprehensible benevolence which God has shown to our nature in the gift of baptism, granting us the remission of all our sins? But what can I say? Neither thought nor word is able to enumerate the rest (of God's blessings). No matter how much I say, the rest will still be such that in its excessiveness it will surpass what has already been said. Thus, who can comprehend with his mind the path of repentance which (God), through His ineffable love for mankind, has revealed to our generation, and, after the gift of baptism, those wonderful commandments, by means of which, if we will, we can win His favor?

2. Do you see, beloved, the abyss of (God's) blessings? Do you see how many of them we have enumerated, and yet we have not been able to retell even a small part of them? How, indeed, can human language depict in words what God has done for us? And while these (blessings) are so numerous and great, even greater and more inexplicable are the blessings which He promised, after this life, in the age to come, to those who follow the path of virtue. Blessed Paul, wishing to present to us in a few words their excessive greatness, says: "But as it is written, 'Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for them that love Him' (1 Corinthians 2:9). Do you see the excessiveness of the gifts? Do you see that His blessings surpass every human concept? Yes, "in the heart," he says, "it did not come." Therefore, if we wish to meditate on them and give thanks (to God) according to our strength, we can both gain His still greater favor and arouse in ourselves a strong disposition to virtue. In fact, the remembrance of good deeds strongly incites to feats of virtue and disposes a person to despise all that is present, to cling to such a great Benefactor and daily to show a living love for Him. That is why this righteous man (Noah) was honored with such favor and honor from God because he showed great gratitude for his former blessings. But in order for our word to be clearer to you, it is necessary to offer your love the very beginning of today's reading. After Noah, by the command of the Lord, came out of the ark with his sons, with his wife, and with the wives of his sons, with all the beasts and birds, and when he came out, he received from God a very comforting blessing for him: "Let them be fruitful and multiply," the divine Scripture, showing us the gratitude of the righteous man, says: "And Noah built an altar to the Lord; and he took of every clean beast, and of every clean bird, and offered it for a burnt offering on the altar" (Gen. 8:20). See carefully, beloved, and from these words, how the Creator of all things has placed in our very nature a precise concept of virtue. Where, tell me, did this come from (the mind of) the righteous man? He did not see anyone else as an example for himself. But just as in the beginning the son of the first man, i.e. Abel, by his own inner impulse offered sacrifice (to God) with great discernment, so now this righteous man offers thanksgiving to the Lord by means of sacrifices of his own free will and sound reasoning, as only he could and as he judged in a human way. And see with what great wisdom he does everything. He did not need a magnificent building, or a church, or any wonderful house, or anything else: he knew, he knew well, that the Lord seeks only (good) favor; And so, having hastily built an altar, and having taken some of the clean animals and of the clean birds, he offered a burnt offering, and by this he expressed his sincere gratitude as much as he could. and the loving God, accepting this gratitude, crowned his diligence and again showed him His favor. "And the Lord smelled," says the Scripture, "a pleasant fragrance" (v. 21). You see how the disposition of the bearer made the smoke and the stench and everything that was unpleasant in this (the burning of animals) fragrant. That is why Paul also said in his epistle: "For we are the fragrance of Christ to God in those who are being saved and in those who are perishing: to some a smell of death unto death, and to others a smell of life to life" (2 Corinthians 2:15-16). "A pleasant fragrance (the Lord smelled)." Do not be tempted by the coarseness of expression, but, having recognized your own weakness as the cause of such condescension in words, understand from this that the offering of the righteous was pleasing (to God). And in order that we may know from experience that the Lord Himself needs nothing, and that He was pleased to accept the sacrifice (of Noah) for nothing else than to stir up people to gratitude, for this purpose He allows all things to be destroyed by fire, so that those who offer them themselves may know from this that everything is done for their own benefit. Why, tell me, does He allow sacrifices to be offered to Him at all? Again, out of condescension to human weakness. Since men, little by little giving themselves over to carelessness, afterwards had to invent gods for themselves and offer sacrifices to them, God was pleased beforehand that sacrifices should be offered to Him, so that at least through this he might divert from the pernicious errors of those who had to give themselves up to impiety. And that all this was really permitted by Him by condescension, see how afterwards He deigned to institute circumcision also, not that it could contribute in any way to the salvation of the soul, but that the Jews might wear it on themselves, as a sign and seal, as a proof of their gratitude, and that they might not mingle with the Gentiles.

3. That is why Blessed Paul calls circumcision a sign, saying: "And the sign of circumcision he received [as] the seal of righteousness" (Romans 4:11). And that it does not serve as a justification in the least, the proof of this is this righteous man (Noah), who attained to such (high) virtue when circumcision had not yet been instituted. And what am I saying? Patriarch Abraham himself, even before accepting circumcision, was justified by faith alone. Even before circumcision, says the Scriptures: "Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him for righteousness" (Romans 4:3). Why are you, O Jew, proud of circumcision? Know that there were many righteous men before him. For example, Abel offered a sacrifice by faith, as Paul says of him: "By faith Abel offered a better sacrifice to God than Cain" (Hebrews 11:4); and Enoch was transmuted, and Noah was delivered from the terrible flood because of his great righteousness; and Abraham, even before he was circumcised, was glorified for his faith in God. Thus, from ancient times and from the beginning, the human race received salvation from faith. That is why the humane Lord allowed sacrifices to be offered to Himself, so that by means of them people, who were even less perfect at that time, could both express their gratitude to God and avoid the infection of idolatry. If, indeed, even after such condescension, many did not escape the fall, then who could have escaped the fatal error if such condescension had not been used? "And the Lord smelled a sweet fragrance." But not so (He did) with the ungrateful Jews. How so? Listen to the prophet who says: "Incense is an abomination to me" (Isaiah 1:13), pointing out the impurity of the inner disposition of those who bring them. As there the virtue of the righteous made smoke and stench the water of fragrance, so here the wickedness of those who bring it has made the fragrant incense abominable to the sense of smell. So, I beg you, let us try to show a pure disposition in everything. It is the cause of all good. The good Lord, as a rule, pays attention not so much to our sacrifices as to the inner disposition with which we perform them, and, judging by it, either accepts or rejects our sacrifices. And so, whether we pray, fast, give alms (for these are our spiritual sacrifices), or do any other spiritual work, let us do all this out of pure disposition, in order to receive a worthy crown for our labors. After all, it will be very strange if we begin to endure labors, and lose our reward, when, i.e., we perform virtue not according to the laws given by God. And it is possible, through the ineffable love of God, even without having done a deed, to receive a crown for the mere disposition; To be convinced of this, look at almsgiving. When you see a man lying in a marketplace and possessed of extreme poverty, and you grieve for him, and immediately, directing your mind to heaven, you thank the Lord both for your own situation and for the patience of this poor man, then, although you will not be able to satisfy and satisfy his hunger, you will nevertheless receive the full reward for your good disposition. For this reason the Lord also said: "And whosoever shall give one of these little ones only a cup of cold water to drink, in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall not lose his reward" (Matt. 10:42). What is less important than a glass of cold water? But (good) disposition also receives a reward for this. We will find the same thing otherwise. I consider it my duty to speak of this to your love, so that you, having learned this with certainty, may root in yourselves a pure (heartfelt) disposition. Listen to what Christ says: "Whosoever looketh upon a woman to lust after her hath already committed adultery with her in his heart" (Matt. 5:28). Do you see, here again the unclean disposition is condemned, and for an immodest look there is a punishment, as if fornication had already been committed? Therefore, knowing this, let us guard in every way the purity of our disposition, so that it may make our offerings acceptable (to God). If it (in Noah) has made smoke and stench the stench of fragrance, what will it not do with our spiritual sacrifices, and what favor will it not gain for us from on high? "And the Lord smelled," it is said, "a pleasant fragrance." Do you see what the sacrifice of the righteous is – how insignificant it is in appearance, but in the purity of his disposition it is very great? Look now at the boundless goodness of the humane Lord. "And the Lord said in his heart, I will no more curse the earth for man's sake: for the thinking of a man's heart is evil from his youth; and I will smite no more every living thing, as I have done: henceforth all the days of the earth" (Gen. 8:21,22).

4. What an extraordinary importance of beneficence, what greatness of love for mankind, what an ineffable excess of condescension! "And the Lord spake in His heart." And this expression, said the Lord in His heart, is used humanly and adapts to our nature. "I will no longer curse the earth for man." God cursed her for the first man, saying: "She shall bring forth thorns and thistles for thee" (Gen. 3:18), and then also for Cain. And so, since He has now brought (upon the earth) such universal destruction, it is in order to comfort the righteous man and encourage him, so that, that is, he may not think to himself: What is the use of the blessing given (by God) and of the words: "Let them be fruitful and multiply," if we, having multiplied, should perish again, for He also said to Adam: "Let them be fruitful and multiply"? and yet, I brought a flood - so that, I say, Noah would not think so, and from this thought he would not feel constant anxiety in his soul, see what love for mankind the Lord manifests! "I will no more," he said, "curse the earth for man." See how clearly (God) has shown that He has put a curse on the earth for the wickedness of men. Then, lest we should think that He has now made such a promise because they have become better, He says, "For the thinking of a man's heart is evil from his youth." An extraordinary kind of philanthropy! For "the thinking of a man's heart is evil from his youth," therefore he says, "I will no longer curse the earth." I, he says, have done My work, and once and twice; but since I see that evil is growing, I promise not to curse the earth any more. Then, wishing to show the greatness of His love for mankind, He added: "And I will no more smite all living things, as I have done: henceforth all the days of the earth." See how God gives the righteous the greatest consolation with all this, or rather, not only the righteous man, but, according to His goodness, all the human race that had descended from him. The words, "I will smite no more every living thing," and "as I have done," and "henceforth all the days of the earth," signify that there will never again be such a flood, nor will such a general destruction befall the world. At the same time, (God) also shows the continuity of His beneficence; "In all days," he says, "I promise forever not to manifest such wrath and not to produce such disorder in the order of the seasons and in the state of the elements? That is why He added: "Sowing and harvesting, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night shall not cease" (Gen. 8:22). This order, he says, will be unchanged, the earth will never cease to give its growth to the human race and reward for the labors of agriculture; and the seasons will not be mixed, but cold and heat, summer and spring, will be in their season. Since during the flood there was a violation of all this order, and the righteous man spent all this time in the ark, as if it were one (continuous) night, (God) says: Now neither day nor night will leave their course, but their service will remain unchanged until the end of the age. Do you see a consolation strong enough to encourage the soul of a righteous man? Do you see what reward he received for his gratitude? Listen, then, in the words that follow, what ineffable goodness God has shown him. "And God blessed," it is said, "Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful and multiply, and replenish the earth. Let all the beasts of the earth, and all the birds of the air, and all that moveth on the earth, and all the fish of the sea, fear and tremble at you: into your hands they have been delivered; everything that moves that lives will be your food; as herbs I give you everything; only flesh with its life, with its blood, you shall not eat" (Gen. 9:1-4). It is impossible not to marvel at the immeasurable goodness of the Lord. Behold, in fact, this righteous man is worthy of the same blessing that Adam (was vouchsafed), and he regains the dominion lost by Adam by his virtue, or, rather, by the ineffable love of mankind of the Lord. As (God) said: "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that creepeth upon the earth" (Gen. 1:28), so He says now: "Let all the beasts of the earth, and all the birds of the air, and everything that moves on the earth, and all the fish of the sea, fear and tremble: into your hands they have been delivered; everything that moves that lives will be your food; as herbs I give you everything; only flesh with its life, with its blood, you shall not eat." Look, the same rule is observed here, only in a different form, as in relation to the first person. As there, God, having given (Adam) dominion over all things, and having allowed him to enjoy the fruits of paradise, commanded only to abstain from one tree, so here, having given (Noah) a blessing and made him fearful to the beasts, and having subjected to him all creeping things and birds, He says: "Everything that moves that lives shall be for your food; I give you everything like herbs."

"Like herbs," he said, "I give you everything." Then, just as God commanded Adam to abstain from one tree, having allowed him to eat everything freely, He says: "Only flesh with its life, with its blood, you shall not eat." What do these words mean? What is "flesh with its life, with its blood"? "It means strangled, because blood is the soul of an animal.

5. Thus, in view of the fact that people had to sacrifice animals to God in time, He seems to give them the following instruction: The blood is assigned to Me, and the flesh to you. And He does this in order to stop their inclination to murder from the very beginning. And that this is true, and that God gives this commandment to people with the intention of making them more meek, listen to the following words: "I will seek your blood also," he says, "in which your life is, I will demand it from every beast, I will also demand the life of man from the hand of man, from the hand of his brother" (Gen. 9:5). What then? Is a person's soul in blood? No, this is not what God wants to say, but He expressed Himself in this way according to human custom, as if one person said to another: I hold your blood in my hands, instead of: I have the power to kill you. And that the human soul is not contained in blood, listen to Christ, who says: "Do not be afraid of those who kill the body, but cannot kill the soul" (Matt. 10:28). See also what (God) used a special expression. "Whosoever sheds," he says, "the blood of man, his blood shall be shed by the hand of man: for man is created in the image of God" (Gen. 9:6). Think how by this saying He increased fear. If, he says, neither the sameness of origin stops you, nor the unity of nature restrains you from evil enterprise, if you, rejecting brotherly sympathy, give yourself up entirely to this abominable design, then consider that he (man) was created in the image of God, was honored by God with such a high privilege and received dominion over all nature, and abandon the evil intention. Why, you will say, if someone commits innumerable murders, and sheds much blood, will such a person be worthily punished, when only the blood of himself alone is shed? Do not reason thus, my dear one, but consider that this man, not long afterwards, will receive an incorruptible body, which will be able to endure unceasing and eternal torment. Notice also the precision with which God pronounced the commandment. Of man He says, Thou shalt not shed blood, and of the dumb He did not say, Thou shalt not shed, but, Only flesh with its life, with its blood, ye shall not eat. There - do not spill it; here - do not eat. Do you see how heavy are not His laws? How easy and easy are His commandments to fulfill? How does He not demand anything difficult and unbearable from our nature? Others, of course, say that the blood of animals is heavy, earthy and harmful to health; but we must abstain from it, not because of this reasoning, but for the sake of the commandment of the Lord. Further, in order for us to know correctly why God pronounced this commandment with such precision, in order to restrain the inclination of people to kill, He says: "But you are fruitful and multiply, and spread over the earth, and multiply in it" (Gen. 9:7). Not without purpose did He say: "Ye are," but as if to say: You, few, few in number, fill the whole earth and subdue it, that is, have dominion and power over it, and use it. Look at God's love for mankind, how He shows great blessings beforehand, and only then gives both the law and the commandment. And just as He settled Adam in Paradise beforehand and gave him so many pleasures, and then He commanded him to abstain from the tree, so it is here. At first God promised that He would bring about no more such universal destruction, and would not show such wrath, but would leave all the elements to invariably complete their course until the end of time and preserve their order; first he vouchsafed them (Noah and his sons) a blessing, granted them the former power over all animals, and permitted them to eat them; then he says: "Only flesh with its life, with its blood, you shall not eat." Do you see how He does good in advance and shows unspeakable bounties, and only then gives the commandments? And it is not like that with people. People want their commands to be carried out beforehand, and that those who receive and execute their orders show full diligence, and only then do they think about the reward of those who have shown perfect obedience. But the Lord common to all acts the opposite: in advance He does good and draws our nature to Himself with a multitude of blessings, and only then gives easy and easily fulfilled commandments, so that we, impelled both by the ease of the commandments and by the blessings received, may zealously strive for their fulfillment. Therefore, beloved, let us not be careless and negligent in the fulfillment of the commandments, reflecting on the former blessings (of God), and on the ease of the commandments, and on the greatness of the rewards prepared for us for their fulfillment; let us be vigilant and diligent in fulfilling the commandments given to us by God, let us not abandon the paths that He has shown our nature for the salvation of our souls, but, taking advantage of the rest of our lives, as it should be, let us cleanse ourselves of sins and try to acquire great boldness for ourselves in advance, especially now, when there is still a part of the Holy Forty Days.

6. In fact, the remaining number of days will not be short for us, if only we wish to be more diligent, even if only a few. I say this not because only this short time is required for the correction of our sins, but because our Lord is loving and merciful, and that He does not need much time; if only we would approach Him with great zeal and readiness, renouncing all worldly things and giving ourselves over to the heavenly desire. Thus the Ninevites, burdened with so many sins, as soon as they showed full and sincere repentance, did not succeed in more than three days to propitiate God and cancel the sentence pronounced against them (Jonah 3:10). And what can we say about the Ninevites? The thief on the cross did not need even one day. What do I say - one day? Not even a short hour. Such is God's mercy to us! When He sees that our resolve (to reform) is firm, and that we approach with ardent zeal, He does not hesitate or delay, but soon reveals His goodness to us, and says: "You will cry out, and He will say, 'Here I am!'" (Isaiah 58:9).

And so, let us also decide in these few days to show some zeal and to make proper use of the aid of fasting.

God hates nothing, nothing so much and does not abhor (anything so) as a person who holds a grudge and constantly nourishes enmity towards his neighbors in his soul. So pernicious is this sin, that it turns away from us even God's love for mankind! And in order that you may be convinced of this, I would like to remind you of the Gospel parable, how one (debtor) received from his master the forgiveness of ten thousand talents, because he fell down at the feet of his master, and begged and besought him. "The prince," it is said, "having compassion on that servant, sent him away, and forgave him the debt" (Matt. 18:27). Do you see the mercy of the master? And when he fell down, he asked only for a respite: "Be patient," he said, "with me, and I will pay thee all," v. 26. But the kind, forgiving, and humane master, taking pity on the slave, gave him not as much as he asked, but as much as he did not expect. The Lord, as a rule, loves to always exceed and anticipate our petitions. Thus, when he begged for a reprieve and promised to pay off the entire debt, the Lord, Who overcomes our sins in goodness, took pity, let him go and forgave him the debt. Do you see what the servant asked, and how much the master gave him? Now look at the madness of this slave. After such condescension and ineffable benevolence shown to him, he himself should have become very compassionate to his fellow-men, but he does quite the opposite. "Going out," it is said, this same (slave) to whom ten thousand talents were forgiven... Listen, I beg you, with attention: what happened to this slave can penetrate to the depths of our souls and force us to expel this grievous illness from our hearts. And so, "when he went out, he found one of his companions, who owed him a hundred denarii" (v. 28). See what a difference. Here is a comrade who owes a hundred denarii; there is a lord demanding a debt of ten thousand talents. And yet (the master), when he saw that the servant was begging and imploring, he forgave him; And this (slave), "seizing him (his comrade), strangled him, saying, 'Give me what you owe.' What's next? "His fellow-man," it is said, "fell at his feet," v. 29. Notice how often the Evangelist repeats the word: "His companion," this is not without purpose, but so that we may know that there was no difference between them. And yet (the debtor-fellow) turns to his lender with the same humiliating request with which he himself addressed the master. "Have patience with me, and I will give you everything. No to... He went and put him in prison until he paid the debt" (v. 30). Oh, utter ingratitude! Still having in fresh memory the mercy shown to him, he did not want to be compassionate, but first strangled (his comrade), and then put him in prison.

See what happens next. "When his companions saw what had happened," says the Scriptures, "they were very grieved, and when they came, they told their lord all that had happened" (v. 31). Not the victim himself (and how could he, being locked up in prison?), but his companions, although they were not personally offended, nevertheless were so grieved, as if they themselves had suffered an offense, and when they came, they told everything (to the master). And see how angry the lord was at last. "Then his lord calls him," says the Scriptures, "and says, 'Wicked servant!'" (v. 32). Truly, from this we can see how pernicious is rancor. When the master demanded (from the slave the payment) ten thousand talents, he did not call him evil; but now, when this slave has been cruel to his fellow, the master says: "Wicked servant! all that debt I have forgiven thee, because thou hast begged me" (v. 32). See how the master rebukes the servant of extreme anger. Have you, he says, presented me with anything more than words alone? And yet, have I not accepted your request, and have I not forgiven you all this great and incalculable debt? "Ought it not behooved thee also to have mercy on thy fellow-man, as I also had mercy on thee" (v. 33)? What forgiveness can you deserve, that I, your lord, have forgiven you so great a debt because of those words of yours alone, v. 26, and you have not even had compassion on your companion and brother, and have not bowed down to mercy or shown compassion for him, remembering the condescension I have shown you, but have appeared merciless and cruel, and will not have mercy on your companion? So now you will really know how much evil you have done to yourself. "And his lord was angry, and delivered him up to the tormentors" (v. 34). See, now (the master) is angry with the slave and delivers him over to the tormentors precisely because of his cruelty to his comrade: what he did not do before, when he owed such a sum, he orders to do now. "He gave him to the tormentors until he paid him all the debt," until, that is, the slave returned the ten thousand talents in which he had already received forgiveness. Very great and ineffable is God's love for mankind: when He demanded His debt and the debtor asked (for a reprieve), He forgave him; And when he saw that he had acted cruelly and inhumanly with his comrade, then he already set a limit to his own benevolence, letting the debtor know by the very deed that he had not so much harmed his comrade as himself. As he (the slave) threw (his friend) into prison until he paid the debt, so the master delivered him over to the tormentors until he paid the entire debt. This (the Lord) did not say simply about talents and denarii, but here He understood the sins and the gravity of (our) iniquities, so that we might know that we, even though we were guilty before the Lord of innumerable sins, nevertheless, according to His ineffable love for mankind, receive forgiveness from Him; but if we ourselves are cruel and inhuman to our neighbors and brothers, who are of the same nature as us, and do not forgive their sins against us, but begin to bear a grudge against them also for these trivial sins (which is a hundred denarii in comparison with ten thousand talents, the same is the sins of our neighbors against us in comparison with our sins against the Lord), then we will incur the wrath of the Lord, and for what we have previously received forgiveness, we will again have to pay with torment. In fact, so that we may know for sure that the Lord offered this parable for our spiritual benefit, listen to what He added: "Thus will My Father in heaven deal with you, if every one of you does not forgive his brother his trespasses from his heart" (Matthew 18:35). And certainly, there is much benefit (perhaps for us) from this parable, if only we are willing to be attentive. Do we really have the opportunity to forgive (our neighbors) as much as the Lord forgives us? Moreover, if we want to forgive, we forgive our fellow servants, and we ourselves receive forgiveness from the Lord. See also how precise the words of the Lord are. He did not say simply: if you do not absolve people of their sins, but how? "Unless every one of you forgives his brother from his heart his trespasses." Notice how He desires that our very heart should be peaceful and calm, that our spirit should be serene and free from all passion, and that we should show perfect disposition towards our neighbors. And in another place, listen to what He says: "If you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will forgive you also" (Matthew 6:14). Let us not think that by forgiving our neighbor we do him a good deed or a great mercy; no, then we ourselves receive a blessing, we derive great benefit from it for ourselves. In the same way, if we do not forgive our neighbors, then through this we will not do them any harm, and we will prepare for ourselves the unbearable torment of Gehenna. Therefore, I beseech you, knowing this, that let us never bear grudges and harbor enmity towards those who have done us trouble or any other offense, but, considering what good and boldness they bring us before the Lord, and most of all that reconciliation with those who have offended us atone for our sins, let us hasten and not delay (to be reconciled with our enemies), and, reflecting on the benefit that comes from this, let us show such a disposition towards our enemies, as if they were our true benefactors. If we are vigilant, it is not so much the benefit of people who are sincerely disposed towards us and who try in every way to please us, as our disposition towards our enemies: it will make us worthy of heavenly favor and lighten the burden of our sins.

8. Indeed, beloved, consider the greatness of this virtue in regard to the rewards which God has promised in every way to those who perform it. He said: "Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who despitefully use you and persecute you"; and, since what was commanded was important and very exalted, He adds: "That ye may be children of your Father which is in heaven, for He maketh His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust" (Matt. 5:44-45). Do you see to whom is he likened, as far as it is possible for a man, who not only does not take revenge on those who have offended him, but also fervently prays for them? Therefore, let us not deprive ourselves, through negligence, of such great gifts and rewards, surpassing every word, but let us strive in every way to fulfill this (commandment), and, even using compulsion to ourselves, let us accustom our soul to submit to the commandment of God. For this reason I have made this exhortation today, I have offered a parable, and I have shown the greatness of this virtue (the forgiveness of offenses) and the abundance of benefits derived from it for us, so that, while there is still time, each of us who has an enemy will try to reconcile him with ourselves by our affectionate treatment. And no one shall say to me, I have asked him (the enemy) once or twice, but he has not consented. No, if we sincerely wish to be reconciled, we will not retreat (from the enemy) until we have conquered him by our earnest requests, until we have attracted him to us and forced him to cease enmity against us. Do we show him any mercy through this? No, the fruits of a good deed are transferred to us: by this we attract God's favor upon ourselves, we obtain forgiveness of sins, and we receive great boldness before the Lord. If we do so, we will be able to approach this sacred and terrible meal with a clear conscience, and with boldness to pronounce those words contained in the Lord's Prayer. The initiates (the faithful) know what I am talking about. Therefore, I leave it to everyone's conscience to know with what boldness we, having fulfilled this commandment, can pronounce these words in that terrible time (Liturgy). But if we neglect this commandment, then what condemnation shall we be subjected to, acting contrary to our words, daring to pronounce the words of the prayer foolishly and light-mindedly, accumulating for ourselves more and more fire (Gehenna) and stirring up the wrath of the Lord against us? I rejoice and admire, seeing that you listen to me with pleasure and show by your applause that you are trying to dispose yourselves (to reconciliation with enemies) and to fulfill this commandment of the Lord. This is the healing of our souls, this is the healing of our wounds, this is the best way to please God, this is the surest distinction of the God-loving soul, when we do everything for the sake of the law of the Lord and do not succumb to ignoble thoughts, but rise above the passions, imagining the blessings that God daily bestows upon us. In fact, no matter how hard we try, we cannot depict even the smallest part of the blessings that have already been given to us (from God), or those that are daily sent down, or those that are still prepared for us (in the future life), if we wish to fulfill His commandments. Therefore, every one of you, when you go out of here, do this work, hasten to it as to the greatest treasure, and do not delay in the least. Even if we have to work hard, or search, or make a long journey, or overcome some difficulties, let us remove these obstacles. Let us take care of only one thing, how we may fulfill the commandment of the Lord and receive the reward for obedience. I know that it is not easy or pleasant to go to someone who is hostile and angry against us, to stand and begin to talk to him. But if you reflect on the high dignity of this commandment, on the greatness of the reward, and on the fact that the benefit of this good deed is directed not to him, but to you, then everything will seem easy and convenient to you. Therefore, keeping this in our thoughts, let us overcome the (bad) habit and with a reverent disposition fulfill the commandments of Jesus Christ, so that we may be worthy of rewards, by the grace and love of mankind of His goodness, with Whom to the Father, with the Holy Spirit, be glory, dominion, honor, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

CONVERSATION 28

"And God said to Noah, and to his sons with him, Behold, I make my covenant with you, and with your seed after you, and with every living creature that is with you, with the fowl, and with the cattle, and with every beast of the earth" (Gen. 9:8-10).