Questions and Doubts

INTERROGATION II

Resp. One sings with the spirit when he merely brings forth the utterance of what is sung by means of the tongue. But he sings with the mind when, understanding the power of the things being sung, he is gladdened by contemplation.

INTERROGATION III

Resp. Since the prior will of God was that we should not be born of the corruption of nuptial intercourse, but the transgression of the commandment brought in marriage, because Adam acted iniquitously (in that he violated the law given to him by God): hence it is that all who are born of Adam are conceived in sin, being made subject to the condemnation of our first parent. ^B And the words, *And in sins my mother hath conceived me*, signify that Eve, the mother of us all, was the first to conceive sin, as if she were in the heat of pleasure. For this reason we too, falling under the condemnation of our mother, are said to be conceived in sins.

INTERROGATION IV

Resp. I wished, he says, to be delivered from Christ ^D to the devil, so as to be scourged and to endure the punishments on behalf of Israel; [alt-version omitted]

^A which they owed by right because of their disbelief in God, only that they might be saved; in the same way as the Lord also delivered himself up, and became a curse for us.

QUESTION V.

QUESTION VI.

QUESTION VII.

QUESTION VIII. In how many ways are allegories spoken; and what is tropology?

Resp. Allegory is that which is taken from inanimate things; for example, in mountains, hills, trees, and other such things. Tropology, however, is that which is in our own members; for instance, the head, eyes, and other such things. Indeed, "tropology" is said to be derived from the word for "being turned" ^A (trèpesthai), meaning to be converted or changed in one’s morals.

QUESTION IX. What is the meaning of what is said in the Psalm: "Sitting, you spoke against your brother, and against your mother's son you placed a scandal"?

Resp. Whoever speaks ill of the actions and character of one to whom he is joined by the bond of faith, and sits, as it were, obsessively in order to bite him with sharp-tongued reproach, he is rightly said to speak against his brother. But he who, driven by envy, makes accusations against someone adorned with wisdom, and scandalizes everyone by that act, he is the one who places a scandal before ^B his mother's son.

QUESTION X. Since it is written in the holy Diadochus in the hundredth chapter: "Some are to be judged by fire and to be purged in the world to come," I pray that you would explain, by your exposition, the meaning of the Father.

Resp. Those who have attained the perfection of love toward God, and have lifted up the wings of their soul, as the Apostle says, are caught up in the clouds and do not come into judgment. But those who have not attained perfection in all things, but possess both sins and good works, these come to the tribunal of the ^C judgment, and there, through the examination of their good and evil deeds ^D as if tested by fire, if—

the scale of good works be found heavier for them, they are cleansed by a just chastisement. ^A

QUESTION XI. On the various kinds of justice.

*Answer.* Those who are learned in divine things say there is a threefold justice: human, angelic, and divine. And they say that human justice is the equitable distribution of honors and goods among those who are affected by the senses, along with probity; angelic justice is the bounteous imparting of divine knowledge; finally, they define divine justice as the suffering of evil for the sake of those who commit sins. ^B

QUESTION XII. For what reason did the Lord, in rebuking Peter, call him Satan?

*Answer.* Not, as some think, that the Lord called Peter Satan in an insulting manner; but because the Lord’s privations became our habits; for instance, His death became our life, His ignominy became our glory. The apostle Peter, being ignorant of this, when the Lord said that He was about to suffer, supposed, following the normal course of things, that it was impossible for Life to die, or for such glory to be disgraced. Therefore, the Lord, removing this opinion of his, and showing that one ought not to seek the sequence of nature in those things which transcend nature, determined to accomplish these things through their contraries: through death, life; through ignominy, glory. As if, then, attacking this opinion of his that stood in opposition, He says: "Get behind me"; as if to say: "Follow my counsel, and do not anticipate, seeking [only] the sequence of things." They say that the name Satan ^C

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[The following is the translation of the Latin apparatus corresponding to the markers in the text.]

(i) *In an insulting manner.* Chrysostom recognizes the great force of the rebuke in those words of Matthew, and that the Lord called him Satan because he was performing the work of Satan (that is, the adversary), and that he might seriously deter him and his associates from that intent: for such was the will of the adversary, that Christ should not suffer. The desire of the adversary (namely, Satan and the devil) was that Christ should not suffer. It is the design and purpose of the devil that I should not suffer. The Lord, therefore, ^D rebuking Peter and, by chiding him, recalling him to his duty; nor do I see how there is not something of vehemence in those words, or why it is not permissible to use something of an insulting nature, especially when the method of rebuking and biting at someone is added, so that you might instill in him a sounder understanding. Thus Paul, "O foolish Galatians," etc. (Gal. III, 1). Corderius’s *Catena* has this chapter of Maximus under his name, in the same sense and with almost the same words, though a little shorter; from which Maximus could have derived and expanded it, just as he transferred those *nemitika* chapters of his into his other two hundred chapters.

^A to be interpreted as opposed; which the Lord did not utter abusively, but as if He were saying, "You who are opposed to My purpose."

INTERROGATION XIII

Since Gregory of Nyssa, in his writings, appears to those who do not sufficiently grasp the depth ^B of his lofty theory to imply everywhere [*many places*] a *restitution* (in the sense of a complete restoration), I ask that you tell me what you know about this.

Resp.

The Church acknowledges three types of *restitution* (restoration to an original state). The first is that of each individual according to the standard of virtue, by which he is restored, having fulfilled the standard of virtue proper to him. The second is that of the whole of nature in the resurrection, whereby it is repaired to incorruption and immortality. The third, which Gregory of Nyssa makes particular use of in his discourses, is this: that the powers of the soul, which had succumbed to sin, are restored to that original state in which they were created. For it is necessary that, just as all nature in the resurrection—at which time we hope to receive the incorruption of the flesh—so too the perverted powers of the soul must, through the passage of the ages, cast off the images of vice and wickedness inscribed upon it; and having passed through all the ages, and finding no place to rest, it comes to God, who is without end. And thus, by knowledge, not by participation in the good, it recovers its powers and is restored to its ^C original state, clearly demonstrating that the Creator is not the author of sin.

INTERROGATION XIV

What is the reason that, when there are many graver insults, the Lord in the Gospels declares him who calls his brother a "fool" to be liable to hell, but says that he who says "Raca" is subject to the council?

Resp.

The name "fool" is understood to refer to someone senseless and demented.

^A. And according to Moses, who says, "This is a foolish people, and not wise," whoever calls his brother who is of the same faith as himself an atheist, an idolater, a heretic, or an unbeliever, this man says "fool," and becomes justly liable to hell. But whoever says "Raca"—that is, "you spit-upon" or "you filthy one"—this man slanders the life of his brother, and is rightly subject to a lighter punishment.

QUESTION XV.

Response. Some of the saints say ^B that the soul was infused by the Holy Spirit, as if by male seed, but the flesh was formed from the virgin’s blood.

QUESTION XVI.

Response. Every one of the saints, from before the Lord's coming ^C, who practiced any kind of virtue—even if he did not know the whole mystery of the economy—yet, moved in part by nature, he hoped and expected that He who created the nature would bring the mystery itself to fulfillment. For I know nothing, he says, beyond what has been said, nor do I seek to know more than what has been spoken, other than that what has been begotten has been begotten of the Spirit. "That we should be to the praise of His glory, who have hoped beforehand in Christ." For all look upon us, those who have believed in the Lord, and they praise Christ, who is the cause of such goods [D ].

^A And moving naturally, he hoped and expected that He who created nature would Himself also restore it, once it had been corrupted.

Herodes, if you translate the name, means "skin-like." It is therefore necessary to abhor carnal reasonings.

QUESTION XVII. What does it mean according to the Apostle: "That flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God"?

Answer. Flesh is desire; blood, I judge, is anger. And it is natural, therefore, that he who is not pure from these cannot inherit the kingdom of God.

QUESTION XVIII. What is a *diapsalma*?

Answer. I think that it is a change from one thought to another, or even a change of the mode of teaching to another mode. ^B

QUESTION XIX. What does the history concerning Lamech signify?

Answer. Some of those who are learned in divine things say that in the times of Lamech, because of disorder and anarchy, the powerful oppressed the weak. This Lamech, therefore, meeting a man with his wife, killed him and took his wife. Then, meeting a brother with a sister, he killed him also and took his sister. And Scripture called the one a man, and the other a youth. These things are so according to history; but according to theory, Lamech is taken for the activity of wickedness. For it killed in us the man, I mean the natural law; and the youth, I mean the spiritual law, and took from him ^C his discernment, so that by mingling with it the movement of wickedness—and [as for the rest]—he did not shrink from confessing the murders he had committed. And as for the one who took two wives, and the youth—it is not two, nor is it Cain, as others have mythologized, but one and the same person, a youth.

^A He took from him—that is, from all—the understanding, so that the sower of evil, being mixed with this, should cause sin to be accomplished. Therefore, the seventy-sevenfold vengeance is exacted from this Lamech; he pays penalties for both the consent and the act. ^B Whence also the Lord, when Peter said, "How often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?" answered him, "Not only up to seven times, but up to seventy-seven times." That is, to the one who repents to you, you shall forgive not only the minor sins that occur in consent, but also the acts themselves.

QUESTION XX

Answer

QUESTION XXI

Answer

QUESTION XXII

Answer

QUESTION XXIII

^A neither causes one who is broken by sin to reach the end of discouragement, nor extinguishes his reasoning faculty if it is puffed up by the vainglory of certain virtues, but allows him to retain his fervor until he arrives at the perfection of knowledge. For this, I believe, is what it means to allow the tares to grow together with the good seed: that is, to allow the passion of human-pleasing and vainglory to grow up along with the virtues. Hence the Husbandman of souls commands that these not be rooted out until the virtues have taken hold, lest someone, wishing to tear them out, should also uproot the fervor of virtue.

QUESTION XXIV

Answer

QUESTION XXV

Answer

^A

INTERROGATION XXVI.

What is the blasphemy of the Spirit? And how is it that "Every sin shall be forgiven unto men; but unto those who have blasphemed against it, it shall not be forgiven, neither in this age, nor in the age to come"?

RESP.

The question concerning the blasphemy of the Spirit carries its own solution. For when the Lord was performing various works of healing, the Jews were attributing the operations of the Spirit to the prince of demons. But regarding the addition, "Neither in this age, nor in the age to come," that there is no forgiveness for those who blaspheme, this must be investigated further. Some ^B of those who have attained precision in such matters through the Spirit say that there are four modes by which the forgiveness of sins comes about: two in this age, and two in the age to come. For because the memory is too weak to recall the faults of one's entire life—so that the human being might repent for them here—the Master of nature, being philanthropic, arranged modes of repentance for us even when we ourselves do not repent; and, as has been said, there are two in the age to come. When someone has sinned indiscriminately in this life and has again performed good deeds—either by being moved to pity and compassion for his neighbor, or by another act of humanity—these, when weighed in the balance at the time of judgment in the age to come, if they incline the scale, result in forgiveness. This is one mode. The ^C second is this: when someone is held fast in sins but, hearing the Lord say, "Judge not, that you be not judged," refrains out of reverence from judging anyone, he is not judged in the examination of his own life, as one who has kept the commandment. For He who is most truthful will not be forgetful of His own commandment. The other two modes have their forgiveness here, when someone who is in sins is arranged by providence to be in troubles, in necessities, or in diseases; for he does not know how God cleanses him through such things. And if he gives thanks while being put to the test, he receives a reward for his thanksgiving. But if he is ungrateful, he is cleansed from the sins for which he is being disciplined, ^D yet he is exacted the penalty for his ingratitude. Furthermore, whatever sins one commits against men, as the word has shown,

^A they have many pretexts for forgiveness. For if one sins against a man, while doing well to another man, the very nature against which he sinned offered the apology. But the blasphemy against the Spirit, which is unbelief, since it has no other pretext for forgiveness—namely, that one does not become a believer—naturally, for him who has ended his life in unbelief, neither here nor in the world to come will the sin of unbelief and godlessness be forgiven.

INTERROGATION XXVII.

What does that riddle of the Proverbs mean: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him drink; for in doing this, you will heap burning coals upon his head”?

Answer.

We have an enemy against the soul—our body—which always wars against us through the uprising of the passions. If, therefore, ^B the disposition of the flesh, being pressed by the conscience, happens to be hungry—that is, hungers for salvation—or thirsts for divine knowledge, it is necessary to feed it through ascetic labors and to give it drink through the meditation of the divine sayings. For in this way burning coals of fire are heaped upon his head—that is, upon the mind—namely, divine and spiritual thoughts.

INTERROGATION XXVIII.

What is the meaning of what is said in the hundred and first Psalm: “I have become like a pelican of the wilderness”? ^C

Answer.

This pelican is a bird; but the serpent, a very ^D [original-script column: see facsimile]

^A grave enemy, hates its nestlings. What does the parent do? It fixes its nest on a height, walling it off on all sides against the serpent. What then does the evil-contriving serpent do? It scouts from where the wind blows, and from that direction breathes its poison upon the nestlings, and they perish. Then the pelican comes, and sees that its children are dead; and it looks at a cloud, and flies to a height with its wings; it strikes its own sides, and through the cloud it drips [its blood] upon them, and they rise again. Therefore, the pelican is taken for the Lord; its children are Adam and Eve, or our nature; its nest is the paradise; the serpent is the apostate devil. Thus the arch-evil serpent breathed through the disobedience upon our first parents, and they became dead in sin. Our Lord and God, however, because of His love for us, is lifted up upon the precious cross; and being pierced in the side, through the cloud of the Holy Spirit, He bestowed eternal life upon us. ^B

QUESTION XXIX. What is the meaning of the words: “There the sparrows will nest”?

Answer. By the name of sparrows, He signifies either souls or various virtues.

QUESTION XXX. What do the words signify: “The house of the heron is the leader of them”?

Answer. They say the heron is a bird; and it possesses such chastity ^C [the Latin text continues with a scholarly commentary on the identification of the heron: some interpret it as a coot, others as a stork, which nests in high places; the Greek text indicates that there are three kinds of herons, the "pellus," the white, and the one called "asterias." Of these, it is said that the "pellus" mates and copulates with great difficulty, and as they say, it lets out blood from its eyes while doing so; hence, they trace the name back to blood and sweat, or perhaps to its delight in marshy places]. ^D

^A live in continence, so that when it is time to come together for mating, it mourns for forty days; and again after this, for another forty. It builds its nest in trees, where it is not shaded by anything, but has pure air. By this, it signifies chastity. For this precedes all virtues; it is separated also from the things of the senses, not being obscured by any of the things that are transitory. For the number forty contains the perfection of each of the four elements.

INTERROGATION XXXI.

RESPONSE

INTERROGATION XXXII.

RESPONSE

one manner of providence to another is habitually termed in Scripture as repentance on the part of God.

^A QUES. XXXIII. What does it mean: "For three or four impieties of Tyre, I will not turn it back"?

Resp. I suppose that the prophet, by these four impieties, hints at these things: the suggestion, the desire, the habit of the evil, and the operation. Now, with regard to the first and the second, that is, the suggestion and the desire, God exercises forbearance, as if the evil has not yet advanced to perfection. But with regard to the third and fourth impiety, that is, the habit and the operation—or, in other words, consent and action—the Word justly indicates the threat. ^B

QUES. XXXIV. Why is it not possible to say "Father of the Spirit" or "Christ of the Spirit," just as it is said indifferently, "Spirit of God," and "Spirit of Christ," in relation to the Father and the Son?

Resp. Just as the Intellect is the author of the Word, so too is it of the Spirit, but through the medium of the Word. And just as we cannot say that the word is of the voice, so neither can we say that the Son is of the Spirit.

QUES. XXXV. What does that which was said by the Lord signify: "If thy eye, or thy hand, or thy foot scandalize thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee"? ^C

Resp. It is possible to interpret the parable in the obvious sense, concerning friends, as if they were eyes, and those of one's household, who are as necessary to us as hands; and companions, who minister to us like feet. If these cause scandal and injure the soul, the Word commands us to cut them off. But there is another way to receive the precept, according to the mode of anagogical interpretation. If you possess contemplative knowledge, just as an eye, and it creates vanity, cut it off; regarding whom St. Paul says: "If a sun be risen, the height of speculation..." ^D

however, you also possess a graceful and honest deed, and from this elation creeps upon you, cut it off as well. In the same manner, if you are capable of a ministry, which is signified by the name of the foot, and you become puffed up from this and proud, depart from it. For it is better for you to lack these virtues, which appear as such, than that through elation and pride you should come to complete destruction.

INTERROGATION XXXVI

INTERR. XXXVII

[alt-version omitted] ^D

so that through faith in Him, when in His loving-kindness He had descended into the realms of Hades, all who believed in Him might be released from the debt of impiety and live in spirit according to God, having been judged in the flesh—that is to say, on behalf of those wrongs which had been committed against mankind. ^A

QUESTION XXXVIII

*Answer.* Whoever, following the manner of the blessed David, pastures sheep—that is to say, the rational faculty of the soul—and, like him, slays the lion and the bear (namely, anger and desire); this man, employing the word of doctrine with a certain high contemplation, delights the hearer and calms the passions of wickedness within him. ^B

QUESTION XXXIX

*Answer.* Since the Divine Scripture says Melchizedek is a priest of God, it is fittingly believed that Abraham, holding the rank of a layman, gave tithes to the priest. That he had the means to provide them is evident from the following. For the kings who had campaigned against Sodom possessed the spoils and booty not only of the Sodomites but also of those other regions which they had previously plundered. When Abraham had routed them and taken everything, he returned what belonged to the Sodomites; the rest, however, he kept for himself, ^C from which he provided the tithes to Melchizedek.

QUESTION XL

*Answer.* It is indeed because the priesthood of the Gospel is believed to exist according to the order of Melchizedek, and not according to the order of Aaron—and it is not recorded that Melchizedek had a wife. Necessarily, therefore, the bishops who serve in the priesthood according to his order do not admit a wife. ^D

QUESTION XLI.

[sc]Resp.[sc] All things performed in the Church have a certain excellent reason. Since, however, these are primarily symbols and mysteries of the divine essence, and images; and since it is uncompounded, while every creature is composite, but the holy Trinity alone, as has been said, is simple and devoid of all composition; for this reason, therefore, the Church sets out the loaves and chalices in an odd number, representing within them the Godhead by a figure. ^A

QUESTION XLII.

[sc]Resp.[sc] That the angels knew of the Lord’s future incarnation for the sake of the salvation of men, one must by no means call into doubt. But that which was hidden from them was the incomprehensible conception of the Lord and the manner of it: how He, being wholly in the Father and wholly in all things and filling all things, was wholly in the womb of the Virgin. ^B

QUESTION XLIII.

[sc]Resp.[sc] Garizin, if you interpret the name, is circumcision. But Bal is a besprinkling or a mass. Therefore, in the besprinkling of the annihilated part of the nations, our Lord Jesus Christ fixes an altar. ^C

QUESTION XLIV.

[sc]Resp.[sc] Chavones are interpreted as windows. Cana, if… ^D

you interpret the name, is possession. Galilee is revolution. Doec the Syrian is the proud mind and faculty of reason. Hermon is interpreted as the turning away of wild beasts. They say that the river Jordan takes its origin from there. By these things, he signifies the grace of holy baptism.

^A INTERR. XLV. What is meant by that which is said in the Psalms: "Be still, and know that I am God"?

Resp. Being still is spoken of in six parts, and if we perform all of these, we shall be able to know God. The first stillness is from the act of sin; the second is from the manner of diet, which excites it; the third is from the company and society of those who live incautiously; the fourth is from any occupation that does not conduce to a life lived religiously and piously; the fifth is from substance which becomes an occasion of vice and distracts the mind with many things; the sixth is that we should entirely lack our own will. This is both renunciation and submission, true and according to God.

^B INTERR. XLVI. Of whom is Jephthah and his daughter a figure?

Resp. Jephthah is taken as a figure representing the Lord; his daughter, however, represents his own most immaculate flesh. For just as Jephthah, born of a harlot, was driven out by his own kin—and having gone forth, he fought and conquered his adversaries, having vowed to God that he would offer as a sacrifice whatever first met him coming from his family and house—so also the Lord, from our nature which had played the harlot, having proceeded according to the flesh without any stain of sin, and becoming himself the sower of his own flesh, and being driven out by those who considered themselves Jews, and having conquered the war on our behalf, offered his own flesh to God and the Father. For Jephthah, if you interpret the name, is called "the opening of God."

^C INTERR. XLVII. How are we to understand what is in the Gospel: "Among those born of women there has not arisen a greater than John; but yet the ^D least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he"?

Resp. Whoever humbles himself more than John (for this is what "the least" ^A means), that person is greater than John. Or, to put it another way: because John is believed to have grasped the power of contemplation attainable in this age, the small and final knowledge that will appear in the future state is greater than whatever knowledge is held in the present age. Or, he who is the greatest theologian among men and by far the most advanced in the science of divine things is the least among the angels. Or, finally, he who holds the lowest rank according to the evangelical instruction is greater than the highest as far as pertains to legal justice.

INTERR. XLVIII. What is meant by that saying of the Proverbs: "He who joins hand with hand will not be innocent"?

Resp. He who mixes a wicked action with a virtuous action will not be innocent.

INTERR. XLIX. What is meant by: "Seven times the righteous man shall fall, and shall rise again"?

Resp. We ought to consider "the righteous man" in this passage to be none other than our Lord Jesus Christ, solely and truly righteous. Since, therefore, he is said to both fall and rise ^B in us—as one who, out of most humane compassion, took upon himself all that is ours—human nature fell seven times. First, by the transgression of the first parent, which was the first to occur; second, by the attempted homicide of Cain, who first introduced murder; third, in the age of Noah, during which the Spirit of God did not remain in men because they were flesh; fourth, at the time of the tower that was built; fifth, in the age of Abraham, who alone was pleasing to God; sixth, under Moses, when the impiety of the people of that age became so adult and increased that he himself had to be sent by God as a helper against it; seventh, in the age of the prophets, which with a greater accumulation of impiety surpassed the preceding ^C ages. Since, therefore, as has been said, human nature had fallen seven times, the Lord, moved by ineffable compassion, raised it up, joining that same nature to himself by the union that is according to hypostasis ^D.

INTERR. L. What is meant by the Gospel, saying: "Wash your face, and anoint your head"?

Resp. Our face is our life, which, like a countenance, represents by certain features what kind of people we are according to the inner man. This, therefore, the Scripture commands us to wash,

that is, to cleanse our life from every stain of iniquity. And the head is our mind, which the Word commands us to anoint, that is, to illuminate and gladden it with divine knowledge. ^A

INTERR. LI. What is the meaning of: "It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones"?

Resp. I think that by "little ones" he describes those who are simple in spirit and, through their smallness of mind, are unable to discern the judgments of Providence. If anyone should scandalize such as these, it would be more profitable for him to be in the camp of the Gentiles, suffering like an ass in a mill—that is, kept in the motion of this world—and to be thrown into the depth of the sea, that is, into the confusion of this life. ^B This is also confirmed by the Apostle Peter, saying: "It is better not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after knowing it, to turn backward."

INTERR. LII. Of what is Cain a figure, and of what is Abel?

Resp. Cain is taken to signify the wisdom of the flesh; Abel, however, signifies mourning, that is, repentance.

INTERR. LIII. What is the meaning of: "Do not call a man blessed before his death"?

Resp. ^C Even according to the obvious sense of the common people, because of the uncertain outcome of things and the instability of the human will, no one should be proclaimed blessed until, having overcome every virtue, he has brought his life to a close without doubt. As for a higher understanding, he who has begun through repentance and asceticism to humble and weaken the earthly mind living within him is not yet to be called blessed, until he has been mortified through the labor of intense asceticism and has attained perfection. For such a one is blessed, as one who has died ^D with Christ through the cessation of evil, and is risen again through the height of virtues. This is also what the Psalmist signifies, saying: "Blessed are the undefiled,"—that is, those clearly pure from wickedness—"who walk in the law of the Lord,"—those who journey through good actions.

INTERR. LIV. What is meant by: "If they persecute you from this city, flee into another"?

Resp. The reason and end of building cities is that what is valued and esteemed most highly should be protected in them in safety and secure defense. Therefore, in an allegorical sense, a city is religious exercise and worship composed of various modes and virtues; as for example, temperance from wine, abstinence from food, prolonged vigils, and similar things, which are as it were citadels and defenses. If, therefore, it happens that we are driven from any of these by the violence and plotting of demons—who, of course, introduce into that type of religious observance the arrogance of pride and the smoke of vain glory—it is better to withdraw from that which appears to be a more refined discipline and training, lest we fall into pride, and to flee to another virtue lacking that stain for the time being, until the word of impassibility arrives. Or else, ^B he calls human souls "cities." For the disciples, sent by the Savior to them, being expelled by those who judged themselves unworthy, pass over to the souls of others, namely to those capable and prepared to receive their teaching. And such cities of Israel they shall not have finished, truly coming to them, and partly being received in them, and partly being repelled and driven out, until the Son of Man comes, fulfilling all things by His glorious advent.

INTERR. LV. How also is "mercy in the scales" the author, holy Isaiah? For there is no good thing that lacks the balance of judgment, although it seemed so to those hired into the vineyard.

Resp. If the very mercy of God is weighed, is it therefore even limited by merit? It is better, therefore, to think thus: namely, just as we are endowed with the faculty of seeing, hearing, and smelling, yet we do not receive all the air, or the light, or the voice—otherwise nothing would remain for others to perceive—but each perceives according to the proportion of the faculty with which he is endowed; so too does the mercy of God, according to the reason and quality of the affections of each of the subjects, bestow both remission and grace. To speak by way of example, he who has performed penance perfectly, he also has obtained remission perfectly; and similarly concerning him who loves. ^C

INTERR. LVI. What is meant by what is said in Ezra: "Terrify them in the law of the Lord"?

Resp. That word "terrify" is said for what it would denote as: "strike them with stupor, and overthrow them," not by promising good things, but by threatening fearful ones. For this is servile and according to the disposition of the Jews. ^D

QUESTION LVII

Resp. He calls the hidden, treacherous suggestions and aggressions of the enemy "night," and the manifest and open ones "day." Therefore, he who has acquired the habit of divine knowledge, and is not ignorant of any of the enemy's thoughts, does not fear any of the enemy's hidden suggestions. For fear is nothing other than expected evil. And indeed, he considers the toils which he endures for the sake of confessed temptations to be "rest" and refreshment, since, by the probation consequent upon his struggle against them, he shines with clarity, and ^B expects with certain hope the blessed crown of incorruption that shall come from it.

QUESTION LVIII

Resp. The feast day belongs to those who rejoice; but confession, to those who are being examined. And the one is of sorrow, the other of joy. This, then, is what it means: that in the judgment, what is transitory ^C and imperfect in the good of man is taken away/balanced out—[I refer here to the correction of the text which the antiquarians had corrupted by error: instead of *parodikon* (transitory), read *paradikon* (to be put aside/expelled)—since it is clear that good thoughts are compared with one another, some having an open confession from examination, others being full of goodness and proven, a confession of praise and joy. Maximus therefore accepted *egkateleimma enthymiou* ("the remnant of thought") as a thought persistently dwelling in the soul, and remaining therein as a habit—by the opposition of which "thought" is in some way called *enthymion*, as something volatile and fleeting, for which the mind itself is culpable because it did not cultivate it, but let it be easily snatched away or flown off like seed by the wayside. Very similar to the exposition of Maximus is that of Athanasius: "The remnant of thought is purified thought, according to the choice of grace; which, being clean, that is, a remnant from sin, keeps a feast." Eusebius also says: "Pure thought, which lacks sin, this shall keep a feast, or shall rejoice." For thus Eusebius intends—not that he spoke absurdly, as the Cordubensis rendered it. The purity of thought, however, ^D when it is of the remnants [of sin], keeps a feast.] Or it means that no ambiguity is left concerning it, since that has been revealed by which one shines—the purity on account of which the saint keeps a feast and exults with joy. Therefore, for both interpreters, *egkateleimma enthymiou* means thoughts left over and proven by the judgment, chosen and pure, having nothing uncertain in them, and thus no longer hindering the joy and feast of the soul. But for Maximus, they are the same things remaining firmly and perfectly in the soul; which the whole of the expression in the LXX, *egkateleimma*, and many other things in the paraphrase, have brought forth, which I would prefer not to recount. The Hebrew words seem to differ considerably, for they have *shearith chamoth*, and render it, "The remnant of wraths thou shalt gird," or rather "thou shalt gird and bind," which is to say, "thou shalt impede," as Rabbi D. explains in the Book of Roots; from which the Chaldean Paraphrase is far distant. But in other peoples, "Thou shalt gird on the arms of fury," or as another says, "The remnant of fury, which has remained to thee from the anger with which thou wert angry, thou shalt prepare for scattering the nations." Jerome: "Thou shalt be girded with the remnant of anger." The LXX had *enthymion*—from which permutation of letters this great diversity has arisen; nor perhaps did they take *enthymion* otherwise than from *thymos*, which is "anger," "fury," or "incandescence"—the fervor and heat of anger, as the Hebrew sounds. Certainly there were men more learned in Hebrew than in Greek; and not infrequently they followed other significations of words than those which are held in the authorities left to us. When, therefore, *enthymion* is accepted both for "mind" and for "anger," they were able to look to the other signification in that word *enthymion*. Thus Aristotle, Book 7 of the *Politics*, explains *enthymos* as *thymos*, by which word the Greeks refer to anger itself and the faculty of becoming angry; and you can scarcely understand one having an "impassioned spirit" or "great spirits" without the force of anger being a companion to it, which itself strengthens those spirits. The "remnant of thought" or "anger"—the thought or anger itself—in a plainer sense are one and the same thing, but the former with a diminutive particle, as in

compared to a balanced and perfected thought; the latter is examined, while the former becomes the occasion for a feast and joy.

QUESTION LIX

ANSWER

QUESTION LX

ANSWER

^A Since he has spent seventy years without having concerned himself at all with such apathy, he has met his end; whereas one who has but a single day, having torn away his entire passionate mind from material things and embraced God with his whole soul, has attained perfection. Therefore, in the distribution that takes place at the judgment, the former receives his reward worthily, as one who has brought the purpose of his calling to completion; while the latter receives it according to grace, and solely on account of the labor of ascetic effort which he endured.

QUESTION LXI

For what reason did the Spirit descend ten days after the Lord's ascension?

^B

Response

Some who are learned in divine matters say that because, according to Dionysius the Areopagite, the angelic powers are in nine orders, the Lord, ascending according to his human nature (for according to his divinity he fills all things), allotted one day to each order, from the lowest to the highest. For even they were in need of the Lord's arrival to them. For in him, according to the Apostle, all things were summed up, not only those on earth, but also those in heaven; and after this he appeared to God and Father, and thus the Spirit came. It is possible, however, to contemplate this matter in another way of spiritual insight. For since the Word of God is hidden within His ten commandments, and becomes embodied in us as He inclines toward us through action, and then leads us back up through knowledge, lifting us until we ascend to the commandment that is higher than all others, which says, "The Lord thy God, the Lord is one," when therefore our mind, having been released from all things, or rather having set all things aside, finally attains to God Himself, then it receives the fiery tongues, becoming a god by grace.

QUESTION LXII

What is the meaning of: "Rarely place your foot in the house of your friend, lest, being full of you, he hate you"?

^B

Response

By "friend" here, the text refers to our body, because of our natural union with it and our affection for it. Therefore, the Word advises that we should not be excessively burdened by the care of the body, but should provide for it only as a trace for the soul; and even this should be done rarely, lest, while you make much of its refection and rest, you end up exhibiting in yourself the things of your enemies and those who hate you.

QUESTION LXIII

What is the meaning of the heifer, prescribed by the law for a murder committed through ignorance, which is hamstrung in the valley?

^B

Response

By these things, he signifies the spiritual will of the [66 Ephes. I, 10. 67 Deut. VI, 4. 68 Prov. XXV, 17. 69 Deut. XXI, 4-6.]

^A Scripture, that we must fear not only because of manifest sins, as though we were about to give an account for them, but also for those things we commit in ignorance, always fearing the heifer—that is, our flesh—that we must hamstring it in the valley of self-control and asceticism. For this reason, they left the heifer alive, so that we too might learn not to kill the body, but to hamstring and tame the rising passions. ^B

INTERR. LXIV. What does the paralytic lowered through the roof signify?

^C ...the land of the Gentiles, which has not been cultivated nor sown. *See the heifer led into a harsh and uncultivated valley.* For after the venerable cross, when Christ was found wounded, He departed from the land of the Jews and migrated into the region of the Gentiles, which had never been cultivated, nor had it received seed. And further: *There, through the divine ministers, the heifer must be hamstrung.* For the mystery of Christ is performed among us who are from the Gentiles; and confessing His passion and His resurrection from the dead, we approach the mystical blessings. This, I think, is what it means for the heifer to be hamstrung. For by proclaiming His death, and likewise His resurrection, we perform the venerable mystery. They hamstrung ^D the ox, [...] [index: entries preserved]

^A lowered by four men, and is it possible, according to the historical sense, for the house to be unroofed?

Resp. As far as the truth of the event is concerned, the house was entirely unroofed. For they who have personally visited those regions say that the roofs of the houses are very light, being made of pumice stone, so that whoever wishes to uncover them can do this easily and quickly. According to the allegorical sense, the paralytic is every mind laboring under sins, and not able, through natural contemplation (for this has the function of the door), to see the Word; but having, through faith, unroofed the covering of the thickness of the legal letter, he is lowered by the four [virtues] from the vain height toward the Word who emptied Himself, ^B and by faith and action receives his footing.

INTERR. LXV. What is the reason why the prophet Elisha prayed against the boys who were mocking him, and bears came out and tore to pieces forty-two boys?

Resp. There are those who say that the boys were not Israelites, but from the Gentiles; and that they were not boys in age, but in understanding and prudence. Since, therefore, they heard that the prophet was performing many signs, and they did not believe, but mocked him—yet there were some present who did not share in their wicked opinion—so that these might not be harmed, and so that the blasphemy might not rebound against God, God Himself intervened against them. According to the spiritual sense, every mind is, like Elisha, bald—that is, pure from material thoughts—and when ascending in knowledge, it is greatly mocked by those reasons which are concerned with sensible things, and with matter and form; for forty denotes sensible things, and matter and form being added, make the number forty-two. Therefore, the mind is mocked by such reasonings, so that it may be cast into laziness regarding virtue. The mind kills these, therefore, through prayer and through the bears—that is, through pleasure and desire; for by a reversal, these passions, when turned toward the good, slay the mocking thoughts.

INTERR. LXVI. How ought we to understand the ignorance of the Son regarding the consummation of the age?

Resp. There is a twofold ignorance: the one is blameworthy, the other is blameless; one is in our power, the other is not in our power. And the blameworthy one, which is in our power, is...

that which concerns virtue and piety; the blameless one, however, is not in our power, such ^A as those things which we do not know even if we wish to—for instance, things that happen far away, or things that are to happen. If, then, things far away and not in our power were known to the holy prophets by grace, how much more did the Son of God know all things, and through Him the human [nature], not by nature, but by union with the Word? For just as iron, when it is made red-hot, possesses all the properties of fire—for it gives light and burns—yet it is not fire by nature, but iron; so too the human [nature] of the Lord, insofar as it was united to the Word, knew all things and exhibited these divine-befitting [qualities] in itself; but insofar as the human nature in Him was not united [to the Word], it is said to be ignorant. For as God He knows; but He says He is ignorant as man, if one separates what is seen from what is understood. If, however, with subtle thoughts, or rather with fine mental imaginations, you separate the created from the uncreated, the flesh and soul of the Lord is a servant and ignorant, had it not been united to the Word of God. Nor does the Son know the day or the hour otherwise than as the Father [knows]. But not even the Son knew, if the Father did not; for from the Father was the knowledge given to Him—since "alone" is not added, as it also is not in Matthew.

QUESTION LXVII.

Answer

^A Since it covers the whole body while leaving only the hands bare, it signifies that we ought to be clothed in moral philosophy, having had the acts and operations [of sin] removed; and that this [philosophy] must always be applied both to capacity and to action. For the power of the opposing evil authority, as the blessed Job 72 says, is "under the navel of the belly," and souls, according to the blessed David 73, are filled with the illusions of demons. And illusions are the various operations of fornication. ^B The *analavos* (scapular), since it has the cross both in front and behind, signifies that we ought, according to the Apostle 74, not only to be crucified to the world, but also to have the world crucified to us, so that as we flee the world, no impediment may overtake us, nor may we be held by affection for it or by lust, deceived by a conspicuous appearance; nor, again, may we relax the intensity of our piety because of the temptations that occur involuntarily from the world when it pursues us from behind; but rather, as if devoid of sense and dead, we should stand fast against both voluntary affections and evil involuntary ones. The cowl signifies God’s grace guarding and covering our mind. For whoever has shorn away thoughts of the world receives the helmet of salvation 75. ^C The sandals have this rationale: since they are made of dead skins and are placed under a very small part of the body, they denote that just as the whole body relates to the traces of a sandal, so it is necessary that the soul use the body, and make it as though dead to unnatural passions (which, indeed, cling to it through vice). Finally, the [i]pallium[/i], because it is square—and the world also consists of four elements—indicates that we ought also to put on that kind of contemplation which is provided by natural perception, so that we may not view things subject to the eyes by the lust of senses and affections, but rather, through the reason inherent in them, be led up to their Author. ^D That the left hand is left bare signifies that good actions ought to shine forth in us, according to what the Lord commands, that men may see our good works and glorify our Father who is in heaven 76. That the garments are black implies that we ought to be obscure to the world, as we have our citizenship in heaven 77. But if anyone were to interpret the square *pallium* as referring to the four general virtues, he would not, even in that, wander from the truth.

INTERR. LXVIII.

Resp. The priest proclaims peace to the Church from the height of the cathedra, imitating the Lord of the cathedra, who, at the time he was being assumed, left and gave his peace to his own. But as for the people responding, "And with your spirit,"

^A this signifies: You have granted us peace, Lord, and mutual harmony; but grant us peace, that is, the indivisible union with You, so that, being at peace through Your Spirit—which You placed in us at the beginning of creation—we may be inseparable from Your love.

INTERR. LXIX. If the dead rise again at all, why, he says, are our bodies not raised? And why, when we are baptized, do we believe that they are transmuted into incorruption?

Resp.

INTERR. LXX.

Resp. If you seek a mystical explanation of the Scripture, it is to be understood thus: *Praise the Lord with the sound of the trumpet*; in the memory of the resurrection, which the trumpet proclaims, as it is written: *Praise him in the psalteries and harp*; by our tongue and mouth, which are struck by the Spirit as if by a plectrum. *Praise him in the timbrel and choir*; in flesh and soul, from which, as if in a dance, prayers and vows ascend to God. *Praise him in strings and organ*; in the heart, and in all the inner viscera and nerves, which he has called an organ. *Praise him upon the high-sounding cymbals*; with the lips, through which the modulated songs of psalmody are woven.

INTERR. LXXI. ^B Since, according to certain copies of the Apostle, it is held: "We shall all indeed sleep, but we shall not all be changed"; but according to others: "We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed"; I ask that you teach me which of the editions should be approved, and what is signified by these words.

Resp. I think that whichever edition one embraces (since the ancient copies contain both), if one receives it piously, he will not err from the Apostle’s intention. According to the first edition, "We shall all indeed sleep, but we shall not all be changed," it is to be understood thus: ^C that it will come to pass that we all sustain the sleep of death, but that not all of us shall obtain the glory and the confidence; a point which the same Apostle sets forth more clearly in another place, saying: "If so be that being clothed, we shall not be found naked." But according to the other, "We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed," it is to be explained so that he says that not all will sleep a sleep extended in time, such as would require burial and the dissolution that is the cause of corruption; but those who are found then will taste death only briefly, and for them there is no need of that long period of time ^D

^A for the resurrection that is to come; but all will be changed, that is, they will put on incorruption.

QUESTION LXXII

What does it mean when Luke says in the Acts regarding Paul, that he "was hastening, if it were possible for him, to spend the day of Pentecost at Jerusalem," ^B since he appears to have knelt, which is forbidden by the sacred canons?

Answer

He is not speaking of that Pentecost itself in which the Spirit descended; but since the fifty days are called the days of Pentecost, Paul was hastening to spend the first day after Pascha at Jerusalem; as it is evident from this that he knelt during the fasts.

QUESTION LXXIII

What is the meaning of: "If anyone builds upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw; the fire will test it. If the work of anyone that he has built remains, he will receive a reward; but if the work of anyone is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire"?

Answer

The foundation is the faith of Christ. ^C Whoever builds upon it, builds gold, that is, the higher theological contemplation; silver, that is, a life radiant with the light of virtue; precious stones, that is, pious thoughts; wood, that is, a proclivity for things subject to the senses; hay, that is, he who fosters irrational affections; straw, that is, he who fosters corruption. And indeed, concerning those who possess good deeds, the day of judgment reveals that their disclosure has taken place in fire, that is, in the Spirit. But in the case of those who sin, their works are burned up, as the discerning ^D [judgment] clarifies things with them all. Indeed, the sacred text itself speaks clearly, saying that Paul celebrated the feast of the Unleavened Bread at Philippi, at the beginning of this journey. And Chrysostom says: "I think he was intent on observing the solemnities in the great cities." And thus, just as he had spent the Pascha and the days of Unleavened Bread at Philippi, so he was anxious to celebrate Pentecost at Jerusalem. Ecumenius himself is not sufficiently accurate when he explains those words of Acts XXI, 5: "And when we had accomplished the days," as referring to the days of Unleavened Bread, since the discourse is about the seven days which Paul spent at Tyre with the disciples, after the days of Unleavened Bread had already been completed at Philippi (Acts XX, 6). And neither, if there were a discussion there about the days of Unleavened Bread, would the passage favor the author, since immediately follows another genuflection of Paul and the faithful: "And kneeling down on the shore, we prayed"; since [the Pentecost time] would have barely elapsed about seven days, and it would not have been the time of the fasts.

^A And the conscience [is burned], and it diminishes sins, and saves the man; but it penalizes the inactivity of virtues in the time that preceded. But even in the life to come, the works of sin will proceed into non-existence, while the nature will receive back its own powers entirely safe through fire and judgment.

INTERR. LXXIV. What is that which David chants, saying: "Give strength unto thy servant, and save the son of thine handmaid"?

Resp. Because by nature we are servants of God; and as sons of his handmaid, which is Wisdom, he prays that strength first be given to us: that is, the mastery over the passions; and then through this, salvation comes to us.

INTERR. LXXV. Since it is written in the books of Kings that God moved David to number the people; but in the books of Chronicles it is said that the devil did this; how will the divine Scripture be shown to be in agreement with itself?

Resp. Since the Apostle calls the devil the god of this age, this is how that in the books of Kings must be understood. Or also in another way, since without the providence of God ^B or permission, these things do not happen.

(s) "And saves the man." In this difficult question and passage of the Apostle, let us see what the superior Greek theologians say. Their prince, Chrysostom in 1 Cor. hom. 9, where he seriously asserts that Gehenna is perpetual and that the punishments of the damned will never end, lest anyone from these words of Paul and the similarity to punishments taken therefrom might think that he will eventually be liberated and attain salvation, shows that the discourse is about believers who build upon [a foundation] a life (namely, virtues or vices) and who receive according to the nature of it. Those who have shone with right faith and virtue, with that which they have built upon remaining, will bring back praise, their virtue having been manifested. But those who have been soiled by vice—"He shall suffer loss": behold one punishment; "but he himself shall be saved, yet so as through fire": behold a second. And he explains more fully in the following: What he says, "he shall be saved," is this: "He shall not indeed perish in such a way as his works do, passing into nothingness; but he shall remain in the fire." And he proves this from the usage of common speech, by which we say that things are "kept" in fire which are not consumed by it and are not straightway reduced to ashes. Whatever, then, this is, it is said for the terror to be struck into sinners by divine judgment. And so "as" is used catachrestically for "keeping"; for he says, "but he shall be saved," that is, he shall be kept safe, so as to be burned even by the fire. He is saved, however, that is to say the sinner, meaning he is kept safe while undergoing eternal punishments; he shall suffer the loss of the kingdom of heaven; "but he himself shall be saved, yet so as through fire," that is, he shall remain safe and entire in the fire, and shall not see death, but his work alone shall be burned and destroyed; he himself, however, shall remain entire for ages, paying the penalty of the fire, and shall not be dissolved. If anyone's work is burned, he will be penalized, yet ^C so as by fire; but he himself shall be saved, that is, the teacher; for he is not the cause of their turning for the worse. That for them he will not pay the penalty; but he himself will also be saved, being tested by fire, if indeed he has a life consistent with his teaching; if he has been penalized in his work, behold one punishment; but he himself shall be saved, so as by fire: behold also a second. But what he says is this: He himself will not perish in the same way as his works, passing into nothingness; but he shall remain in the fire. The word "saved" is used catachrestically for "kept." But he will be saved, that is, he will be kept safe, so as even to be burned by the fire. He is saved, however, the sinner, that is, kept safe, undergoing eternal punishments; he will be penalized, [losing] the kingdom of heaven; but he himself will be saved, as through fire; that is, he is preserved safe. ^D Anyone who has fulfilled all that pertains to him, to the point of persuading, and has not persuaded, as one who has achieved it, would be a man worthy of being admired. So far is he from being worthy of blame.

nothing happens by providence, but rather all things come to pass either by God’s good pleasure, or by economy, or by permission; so that when it is written in the books of Kings that God “incited” [David], it is pious to understand this as meaning that He “permitted” it, while in the books of Chronicles, the devil is mentioned as the one who acted and became the cause. ^A Seventy thousand fall, those who were found with Absalom, those who possessed the passion of pride and arrogance. According to the contemplative interpretation, this signifies that whoever is a David, who—not by deliberate choice, but by seduction—has given birth to a thought of elation, upon repenting, asks God [to help], and the thoughts concerning temporal and passing things die. For the number seventy signifies temporal motion, on account of the sevenfold recurrent cycle of days. Therefore, it is better to pray to be pursued by hostile demons than to be punished with a famine of hearing the word of God.

QUES. LXXVI.

Ans.

QUES. LXXVII.

Ans.

^A by these things, that whoever receives from another the example of evil, this one has laid bare the intestine of the father; but whoever gives birth to sin from himself, he is the father of the mother—that is, of his own sin. Such men, therefore, shall not enter into the house of the Lord, even unto the third and fourth and tenth generation, and even unto eternity. This means: he who, neither through a good habit and action (for this is the third and fourth generation of virtues), nor through the name and faith of the Lord Jesus, nor through the ten commandments of the law, nor through the regeneration of the age that remains, reconciles himself to God and seeks to be close to Him, shall not enter into the house of God; that is, into the heavenly city, where the habitation of all who rejoice is found.

INTERR. LXXVIII. Why is it that, according to the decree of the law, a person who is leprous in part is unclean, whereas one who is entirely leprous is judged clean?

Resp. He who is leprous in some part has a limb contaminated and deadened by leprosy. For because the vital blood flees from it, the place subsides and becomes hollow; and when the hollow of the leprosy was touched by the detection of the priest, it defiled such a one. So too, he who has become leprous in some part of the soul—the soul having become hollow, that is, humbled through the withdrawal of the vital power of virtue—becomes unclean. But he who is entirely leprous possesses the color of the leper, yet has the vital blood dispersed throughout the surface of his entire body. This signifies ^C that one who has reached the extreme limit of wickedness and subsequently performs penance recovers the vital power of virtue; he merely keeps his conscience stained by the prior information of his thinking mind. For he cannot not remember what he has done, nor think of those things as if he had not done them. That, therefore, is the reason why the law declares such a person clean.

INTERR. LXXIX. What is the meaning of the five kinds of victims which were offered according to the rite of the law: the sheep, the ox, the goat, the turtledove, and the dove?

Resp. In one sense, the ram is taken as that which is leading, to signify the power of reason; the bull, to signify the irascible power; the goat, for desire; the turtledove, for chastity; the dove, for holiness. If, however, one must also naturally examine the properties of each animal ^D and adapt for each of them the appropriate spiritual, rational sense, those who have worked on such matters say that the sheep presents three things to the Lord: the fleece, [the wool], the milk, and the lamb. Or the pupil of the eye, of which it may be, as it were, a certain initial work and interpolated, whatever this may be, or increased and interpolated by an alien hand, as generally happens in writings of this kind, where nothing coheres; but they are questions as they occurred to memory, with no certain order or method, gathered from here and there.

^A sheep, the wool, the milk, the lamb. The pupil of its eye revolves with the sun, and every day it voids 365 droppings. Now man is the rational sheep; if he is eager to offer himself as a sacrifice to God, who possesses him, he is obligated to provide, just as wool, his activity formed by good morals; and as milk, his natural contemplation (for this is the nourishment of the mind); and as a lamb, the disciple who has been taught and matured by instruction, whom he strives to present to God in all things similar and perfect to himself. ^B Moreover, such a person has the pupil of his eye revolving with the sun—that is to say, his intellect—revolving with the Sun of justice through his providential governance of all things, bearing our affairs; that is to say, he follows Him. For in afflictions as well as in good times, he gives thanks, trusting in the providence that governs all things well. And such a man casts off every day 365 droppings—that is, he casts off those things that are subject to time and generation, which are perishable and superfluous.

Regarding the ox, they say that it possesses a triangular heart, a kidney with five projections, and that it has three stomachs. By day it has light-colored eyes, but at night they are fiery; and a third of the day and a third of the night, looking toward the east, it breathes as it exhales. Its right nostril smells of musk, and its blood is deadly to all tame animals, except the dog. Therefore, it is fitting that we too, like the ox, taking up the yoke of Christ, should cut open our stony hearts and root out the thorns of the passions, and enlarge the earth of our heart for the reception of the divine Word. To have a heart that is triangular ^C signifies to possess the doctrine concerning the Trinity in a sound manner within the heart; so that, just as the heart naturally distributes life to the body, so too piety toward God should establish and quicken the members of the soul. That the kidney should have five projections signifies that the faculty of desire ought not to be turned toward vices and lusts, but through the five senses should contemplate creation for the sole purpose of being drawn to the desire and love of the Creator. And to possess three stomachs: the stomach first receives the food, and through the digestive power transmits the pure part of it to each of the members, and gives the rest to the belly. So therefore it is fitting for us, advanced through moral, natural, and theological contemplation, and distributing what is suitable to all the members of the soul, to take care also of the inferior part—that is, the body; for the belly is to be understood as this. To look toward the east and breathe a third of the day and a third of the night signifies looking upon the threefold providence of God—the conserving, the converting, and the chastening—and, paying attention with our minds, to give thanks both in the night of temptations and in the day of prosperity; and to have our eyes such that they are fiery at night and light-colored by day—that is, to have the contemplative power which, in the day of virtues, receives the rays of knowledge from the Sun of justice, and in the night ^D of the successive temptations brought upon us for the sake of virtue, receives...