to live in continence with fear and trembling, so that you do not appear unworthy of the honor, and so that the members of Christ do not become members of a harlot! This word can fortify every soul in continence; this word easily quenches burning concupiscences. Just as a shower of rain falling upon a fire does not so easily extinguish the flame as that word, when admitted into the soul, makes evil concupiscences wither. The great Job can also speak these same words to us, who was not only a diligent practitioner of continence, but also set a law for his eyes, so that they might not look upon the face of a virgin, lest perhaps her beauty might radiate into his mind and captivate it (Job 31:1): yet who would not wonder and be astonished, seeing this man fight manfully against the devil, and conquer all the machines of the wicked one, and yet flee from the face of a virgin, and turn his eyes away from the sight of a beautiful girl? Seeing the devil approaching indeed, he did not flee, but remained like a lion, trusting in his strength: but having seen a virgin, he did not stand, nor did he delay in contemplating her beauty, but immediately retreated. He judged, forsooth, that in the battle against demons, a manly and bold spirit is needed; but in the preparation for continence, victory is granted, not through familiarity with virgins, but through retreat. Whoever, therefore, promises virginity, let him accept the counsels of the most continent of all men, who himself, even before Christ was incarnate, was so diligent a guardian of continence. For it is not to be heard negligently that, before Christ was incarnate, just men appeared exhibiting such a specimen of continence. For there was not that which compelled them with such force toward that virtue, nor was the neglect of the possession of continence a crime for virgins. But how is this? Because for the sake of this cause, God the exalted, the Maker of all things, took our form, so that He might bring down the sanctity of the angels from heaven. When, therefore, men, after so great an honor, deliver themselves over to pleasures, the magnitude of their rashness cannot be told, by which, making the members of Christ the members of a harlot, they offend the mercy of the Lord, B and as much as is in them, render it vain. The demons hear, and they fear, because God does not connive so that they may be joined to Him, but He joins us to Himself. And do some of the faithful dare to cut themselves off from Christ, so as to join themselves to harlots? It is not as great an evil to fall from heaven into the mire, as it is a great evil to have been made a member of Christ, to fall away from divine honor, and to become a member of a harlot. When evil concupiscence inflames the soul, immediately remember Christ, think that Paul is standing by you, exhorting you and saying: "Do you not know that your bodies are the members of Christ? Bearing the members of Christ, will you make them the members of a harlot?" (1 Cor. 6:15). If you have remembered those words, you will immediately see the pleasure fleeing. For if a chaste and modest mistress makes her handmaids, given over to turpitude, modest by a single look: what is the wonder if the memory of Christ immediately puts to sleep the titillating pleasure? Always hold the radiant cross before your eyes, and you will depart pure from sins for that period of time. For just as the pillar of the cloud, an image of our cross, protected the multitude of the Hebrews, so that it might suffer no evil from the Egyptians (Exod. 13:21); so the cross seen before the eyes immediately drives away all evil pleasure. For this is the salvation of the soul, and a salutary antidote for foul concupiscences. For the infirmities of the body are healed by the arts of physicians, but the sick soul is healed immediately by the words of Christ. Therefore, we pray and entreat those who have sinned, and who still serve the pleasures of the flesh, that they may be awakened and return to their senses, so that they may not be entirely conquered by their affections, nor carried away by impulse, nor voluntarily subject themselves to bitter servitude, but that they may oppose them in battle, and strengthen their mind with the fear of Christ, and cast out the grave mistress from the fortress: so that, with every stain cast away, and the crowd of sinners [removed], with a holy and incorrupt soul we may be able to approach the divine and reverend sacraments of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ: to whom be glory and empire for ever and ever. Amen.