to men for their help. For this reason the Law was given through Moses; for this reason, O miracle! God is on earth with a body; for this reason the Cross, the preaching of the Apostles and martyrs, the synods of the inspired Fathers, and for this reason their pious way of life and good order. Truly, the knowledge of these things is life, but ignorance is death. And just as some destroyer and spoiler of a man, when he wishes to lead some child of a pious father astray and win him over to himself, does not immediately praise his own things—for he knows that the youth will not accept them, having within himself the good teachings of the father—but first disparages the father’s things as being nothing to him, and as being more appropriate to silly old men, and thus having made him obedient, leads him down into his own abyss: so too the devil. For since he variously battled against Christians, through tyrants, through heresiarchs, and through himself, and knew that he was defeated on all sides by the divine Scriptures, he snatched them away from the orthodox, or persuaded them to neglect them, so that they might easily be overcome by the heretics, and, thinking themselves orthodox, differ in nothing from those who are irrational; which is what he has done.
But to recount these absurdities here in detail, as I said, is superfluous, unless we first demonstrate that the holy Scriptures are the source of every good in us. But what would you have us speak of first? Of charity? Of community? Or of some other virtue? I, for my part, think it is necessary to speak first of the communal way of life, and how it might be established, and what good comes from it; then of the administration and method of this common life, and of other things among us that are necessary, though neglected. C For such an institution, with knowledge as its companion, greatly benefits us, leading us into spiritual charity and concord; for this life is without danger, a sure salvation, a life that is harmonious, concordant, and ordered as if among angels, an ancient way of life of those called by Christ, a happy kind of existence, an image and beginning of the future restoration—in which there will be no envy, no strife, no vainglorious character, nor a covetous manner among those who are being saved. They are far removed from the passions that agitate the soul contrary to nature, for in this life there is nothing but what is honorable and becoming—which it pleases the divine David and the Truth to call a sacred ointment and spiritual dew, and a harmonious choir, in the midst of which stands, as has been proclaimed, the leader and chorus-master Christ, the source of every good.
D Whence, therefore, can we demonstrate all these things, if not from the divine Scriptures, as the divine Fathers who were before us also did? And that such a way of life is ancient and befitting the servants of Christ, the Acts of the Apostles reveal, for it is recorded there: "The heart and soul of the multitude of them that believed was one, and not one of those things which he possessed did any man say was his own, but all things were common to them." Do you see how the common life was not more corporal than spiritual? But with us, the community consists more in corporal things than in spiritual; we envy one another, and we afflict and in-
-A sult them in their weakness; we contend in our works. How then is this the common life? For the body does not dissent against itself; the thumb does not say to the little finger: "I labor more than you"; nor does the healthy member hate and turn away from the sick one, but rather heals it and renders aid. For the Apostle says to the Romans: "As in one body we have many members, but all the members do not have the same action, so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and everyone members one of another." And again: "We who are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let every one of you please his neighbor for his good unto edification. For Christ did not please himself; but, as it is written: 'The reproaches of them that reproached thee fell upon me.' Wherefore receive one another, as Christ also received you." And to the Corinthians: "Be without offense to the Jews, and to the Gentiles, and to the Church of God, as I also please all men in all things, not seeking that which is profitable to myself, but to the many, that they may be saved." And to the Galatians: "Brethren, if a man be overtaken in any fault, you who are spiritual, instruct such a one in the spirit of meekness, considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted. Bear ye one another's burdens, and so shall you fulfill the law of Christ." B And James: "Where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work." We are unaware, therefore, into what state we have come; not becoming coenobites, but each man fending for himself and engaged in his own business. For when the strong and healthy man shares nothing with the one who is suffering and infirm, serving him in his necessities, but instead says with excessive boldness: "Let him labor as I do; let him eat the same things as I do," how is this not cruelty, and hardheartedness, and the dissolution of the spiritual and common life? C For spiritual charity is to lay down one's life for one's brother, if need be. When, therefore, we do not even weary ourselves in body, do we possess a coenobium so that the commandments of Christ might be fulfilled in us, or so that they might be contemned? Otherwise, remain in private life; do not corrupt the angelic life, do not accuse Christ by saying: "We are not like Christ, that we might perform the virtues as He fulfilled them," thereby separating yourself from Him. For the Apostle John says: "He that saith he abideth in him, ought himself also to walk, even as he walked." And again: "Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer; and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him. In this we have known charity, because he hath laid down his life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren." And Christ Himself: "If I then being your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that as I have done to you, so D you do also." And again: "A new commandment..."
I give to you, that you love one another; even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." B Do not, therefore, falsely accuse Christ, since He became man for your sake; nor become a disciple of the devil instead of Christ; nor present the cenobitic model and rule as an aid to your own malice and lack of compassion, which we have received as a means for us to aid one another. And understand what follows in the history: "And with great power the apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all; for there was not a needy person among them." Do you see whence the preaching derived its power and grace? From the fact that all who believed lived in abundance. And how this was, the history adds: "For as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles' feet; and distribution was made to each as any had need." Not all cast into the common store in equal measure, nor was it given to all in equal portions; but rather according to what each possessed and according to what each had need of.
It is now time to speak of prayer and psalmody. Concerning prayer: martyrs, prophets, and apostles prayed, who handed down prayer to us; and we ourselves use it in necessities. But more perfectly, Christ Himself, not only by deed, withdrawing into desert places and praying in private, teaches us, but also by words, how we ought to perfect prayer and not grow weary, setting forth as an example friends and sons asking and receiving, and the widow persistent in her prayers until violated justice was restored, and many such things. C Regarding psalmody and spiritual hymns, and the utility of song—even that which is done in the world—it is possible to see its value. For if worldly princes provide rewards to those who sing to them, how much more is God generous! Witnesses to this, worthy of belief from Holy Scripture, are Moses, David, Solomon, and as many others as sang hymns in honor of God. From them it must be learned how one is to sing individually or in choir, and not only concerning psalmody, but also concerning the rest of the temple ministries. For the Levites were arranged; some for this service, others for that; and in psalmody they appointed diverse choirs, singing responsively, so that by turns the labor might be lightened, and it might not cease. D Furthermore, the angels in Isaiah signify to us the beautiful order of the Church; not that all together, nor that some are crying out the hymn while others are silent, but one to another, as if one had need of the other's help in the singing; and indeed, they suggest to us the measures of psalmody, standing around the divine throne with fear and trembling, not looking hither and thither or walking about, as we (who) are agitated within the temple of God.
But [we must act] thus: while rendering our prayers to the Lord, A we must not neglect the work of our hands, through which we provide necessary food and clothing, so that we may not burden anyone under the pretext of prayer or idleness. Nor should we overlook a brother who is suffering and in need of our help; for it is better to leave aside a small virtue than to violate a great command of the Master. For it is in the fulfillment of the command that the excellence of our good intention is naturally completed, and not the other way around; therefore, the entry to the bridal chamber is barred to those who practice virtues without discretion. For it is written in the first book of Kings: "The Lord does not desire burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as obeying His voice; for behold, good obedience is better than sacrifice, and attentiveness of the ears better than the fat of lambs." Just as the Apostle also says in the letter to the Hebrews: B "Do not forget hospitality and sharing, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased." And in the letter to the Ephesians again: "Let him who steals steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need." But I would call 'theft' the gathering of wealth, in whatever way it is done with deceit; as when, approaching the rich or the poor, we lament a false poverty and indigence, and [complain about] the expenses of churches and the construction of votive offerings, heirlooms, and statues, the lack of sacred vestments, and the destruction of histories, so that we may have with abundance all things which we did not have while we were living in the world; and when we obtain them, others do not obtain them and they groan, because our virtue has been rendered empty, not to say the cause of harm. C
Furthermore, we must also speak concerning the election of an abbot, and what sort of person he who is set over others ought to be; by no means defining this from our own gut, but as much as we have learned from the divine Scriptures or from the Fathers. He must be persuaded, and not brought to the abbacy by force; yet he should not be accepted easily without probation, but one should be chosen from the brotherhood after prayers to God; just as the apostles of Christ chose Matthias, and Barnabas and Paul, and the seven deacons. For he who seeks a dignity of his own accord must be rejected, as Peter rejected Simon; or, if he is one of our close friends, he must be admonished, as our Lord admonished the sons of Zebedee. For if the kings of the world consider those who seek a dignity of their own accord to be rebels, how much more does God? For Paul says in the letter to the Hebrews: "Every high priest taken from among men is appointed for men in things pertaining to God." D And a little later: "No one takes the honor to himself, but he who is called by God, just as Aaron. So also Christ..."
A did not glorify Himself to be made high priest, but He who said to Him: 'You are My Son, today I have begotten You.' He must also be tested in everything, so that He may serve the brothers in soul and body, since it is for this that He is chosen. For, as the prophet says, 'Shepherds do not feed themselves, but the sheep.' This would come to pass if one were adorned with an understanding born of great knowledge and long experience. And let him not please himself, as it is said, just as it also seems to the Theologian Gregory, who says after the matters regarding Maximus: 'To whom the spirit is common, to them the passion is common; and to whom the suffering is common, to them the believing is common; for what a man has not suffered himself, he will not believe in another; but he who has suffered is readier for compassion; otherwise, a blind witness of an invisible passion would be a mirror of a foreign face for himself.'
For those who are not tested in this way, becoming arrogant, fall into the testing and snares of the devil, finding new laws and abrogating the old ones, doing everything as it pleases their own eyes; wherefore they become authors of ruin and schisms, and suffer the same things as Roboam of old. They aggravate the yoke of the brothers, which they do not touch even with a finger; they do not sympathize with their subjects as the holy men of old did, demanding full and pure obedience while providing none themselves, unaware that if all were by nature docile and of one mind, there would be no need for those set over them. They avoid the example of Moses praying for the people and saying to the Lord: 'If You will forgive their sin, forgive; but if not, blot me out of the book which You have written.' Nor that of David, who, B when three punishments were proposed to him because of the census of the people, wished to choose neither famine nor war, lest he, as king, being spared, should not perish with the people, but chose the plague that was to attack all indiscriminately; and crying out to the Lord while he saw the people being struck by the angel: 'Behold, I have sinned; let Your hand come upon me and upon my father's house: what have these sheep done? Let Your hand be turned against me, and against my father's house.' They avoid the example of Christ, who said to those who were arresting Him: 'If therefore you seek Me, let these go their way,' namely His disciples.
But rather, they frequently despise the infirm and mock them, saying: 'Let him suffer, it is not advantageous for him to be restored to health.' Who among the saints ever spoke thus, or did he not rather serve the infirm with mercy? These men, from pride, possess a distorted judgment. They judge the medical care of one living under the monastic rule to be unworthy—provided they themselves are healthy—and rather think it is more appropriate for animals. For although they do not suffer the diseases of animals, nor hear their voices, they guess the illness from their reclining, touch, and appearance, and offer appropriate medication, neither remembering the poor, nor kings, nor any of the saints who C helped the infirm. However, from the reclining, from the touch, from the appearance, they conjecture the illness and the cure, D
A just as they have no concern for bodily things, so neither for spiritual. Without proof they shear those who approach them; then they banish them into ten thousand pathless places—to ox-stalls, to goat-pens, to sheepfolds, to mills, and similar things, which they and their accomplices have devised for the destruction of their own souls. And the word of the Lord spoken to the Scribes and Pharisees is fulfilled in them: "For you travel over land and sea to make one proselyte, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a child of hell as yourselves."
But enough of this. What remains to be said? Let us speak now concerning confession and repentance; and whence do we have the means to prove these things? From the holy Scripture, naturally. And let us bring into the midst the ancient Lamech—since for this reason the genealogy reaches even to him—to show how, having been brought to his senses by the example of Cain, he became repentant, and considered his own wound to be murder. For he multiplies the punishment of his forefather upon himself, saying: "For vengeance was exacted sevenfold from Cain, but from Lamech seventy-seven fold." That is to say, since Cain, having sinned greatly, was punished sevenfold for the murder, B my own punishment, as I have sinned far more greatly, shall be exacted seventy-seven fold. Let us also bring in David, rebuked by Nathan; Ahab, by Elijah; Manasseh, by his own conscience; the Ninevites; Peter. These obtained mercy through repentance, just as, conversely, those who did not repent did not.
That fruits must follow repentance and confession, we might learn from what has been said, or rather from the evangelical passage about John now to be cited: "Then," he says, "all Jerusalem, and all Judea, and all the region about the Jordan went out to him, and they were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins. But seeing many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them: 'Brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Therefore, bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not think to say to yourselves, We have Abraham as our father.'" C These things I have set forth from many as an example, as I said in the beginning, that you might know that holy Scripture is the light that illuminates us. And for this reason, one must love the holy books, and embrace them, and acquire them, and constantly read them, and examine what is in them accurately, and deposit them in the mind, so that when the need arises, we may have them for our aid. For if Christ and his disciples use them, much more must we, the infirm, use them.
But, one may say: "Reading, I do not understand what I read." Are you an Ethiopian, tell me, or an Arab, that you do not know the Greek dialect? What difficulty does the following have: "The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham"? D Nothing in these is crooked or twisted, according to the writer of Proverbs: "All things are straight to those who understand, and right to those who find knowledge." For it is not possible to say this more simply.
A If I say to you that the word "genealogy" is signified by these words: "The book of the generation," you reply to me: "What is genealogy?" This is as if you were to ask what is "bread," and when I answered, "It is that which is commonly called 'a loaf'," you were to say again: "What is 'a loaf'?" And if I were to attempt to explain the origin of that word, as some say the spies of Cambyses once did to the king of the Ethiopians, similarly, if I were to tell you that David was the ancestor of Christ, and Abraham the ancestor of David, you might say: "Who is this? And who is that one? And when? And where? And of what kind?" These things cannot be explained all at once, since one history follows another, and they require a long effort.
You say: "Those things are not stated thus; rather, the dialect of Scripture is different, and those who wrote it are the authors of this obscurity." But they are not the authors, as you say; rather, it is our own negligence, in that we are unwilling to learn our own language. Accept what I say to you: the dialect of the Greeks was at first one for all, not differing—that is, it was common. But after the dispersion of the tribes, a separation brought about a certain discrepancy, and this was all the greater to the extent that they migrated at different times. B In the beginning, there were the Ionians, the Aeolians, the Dorians, and the Attics; some of them dwelt within the Peloponnese, and others outside it. The Dorians held the eastern parts of the Peloponnese; the Ionians, the western parts; the Aeolians, those parts around the Corinthian Gulf which is called Achaia; and the Attics, the Athenians, held Attica, which is a part of Hellas. After this, the Aeolians migrated to lower Asia, and the Dorians to the islands, as did the Attics. This cessation of community split the one dialect into four, while the common dialect was still preserved, but in such a way that it differed in many respects. Thence, five dialects have been handed down to us by the poets and the writers of history: the dialect that was common from the beginning, and [then] the Ionian, the Attic, the Dorian, and the Aeolic. Of these, the Ionian seems more ancient and more influential, not only because the ancient poets used it—such as the Sibyl, Orpheus, Homer, Hesiod, and the like—but also because it prevails among the C moderns, just as the Attic prevails among the orators, such as Gorgias, Aeschines, Demosthenes, and the rest. But now such dialects have been altered by intermingling and have become altogether barbarized as time has flowed on. Hence, too, comes the cause of the ignorance of the Scripture among us, since we have lost both the common dialect and the [proper] use of the craft. Whence it is possible to see that in this region people adhere to one tradition of Scripture, according to some ancient custom, while in another region they have others, something I shall endeavor to demonstrate on account of the rustic nature of some.
Some in Achaia call a well (phrear) "the dug-out spring" (hōrorygmenēn pēgēn), and a caldron (lebēta) and a copper pot (kakkabēn) "the bronze kettle" (chalkēn chytran)—things which are unknown by those in Macedonia, just as some of their own terms are unknown among those [the Achaeans], such as "hoarfrost" (stibē), "fleabane" (konyza), or "myrtle" (myrsīnē). The D Cretans, for their part, do not know many such things, speaking in the Latin style because of their commerce—namely, for "narrow way" (stenōpon) they say "street" (rhymēn); and among vegetables, for "carrot" (daukon), "saffron" (krokon), "bugloss" (bouglōsson), "alexanders" (makedonēsion), and "marjoram" (sapsychon). And having altogether barbarized "caldron" (lebēta),
A they say labenzi. Likewise also in other matters. For there are some names that they bring forward more Hellenically than those in other regions; for example, "kid" (eriphos), "goat" (aiga), "jackdaw" (koloion), "lark" (korydalon), "nightshade" (strychnon), "bryony" (bryōnian). Likewise also some words which they do not know in other regions. But some others fall into a different sense; for instance, "to be anxious" (adēmonein), "to cavil" (eirōneuesthai). And those in our regions do not know the difference between a spring (pēgē) and a fountain (krounos), but call everything a well (brysin). But those in Cephalonia call it, where it exists, a pēgē (spring). And those in Sozopolis on the Pontus, call it a krounos (fountain) in some places; and those in Adrianople call certain long beams "ikria." Macedonians, however, for "crosses" (staurous) in hedges, call them "stabara." But the Zacynthians call the long pieces placed obliquely across these "diatonia." And our people, instead of "rise up" (anasta), say "sēkōthēti"—that is, "be lightened"; but the Cypriots, elliptically, say "ana"—and the Corcyraeans likewise for what follows, "asta." Likewise, Cypriots and Cretans write "on the ground" (chamai) and "to the left" (aristera)—but others say these more barbarously; and instead of "on the ground" they say "downward" (katō)—but "downward" has a relationship to "upward" (anō). And those in Apulia and Sicily bring forward some things according to the rule of Scripture; for example, "He broke the bread" (eklase ton arton), and "I have just arrived" (arti paragegona).
And the Carpathians say "hēmēn" instead of "I was" (hypērchon). But as the Artacesians and Cyzicenians say "edarthēna"—which those in our dialect call "edarthēka"—but the Pontians say "edarthēn." Similarly also "lepadas" (limpets)—some kind of oyster—and "branchia" (gills)—those of a fish; just indeed as do the Hellespontines. And these words have been found accordingly both among poets and philosophers. But the majority in our region say "syre" (drag) instead of "go" (hypage); it is elliptical, for "drag your feet" (syre tous podas), or "hasten your way" (helke tēn odon). Some shout "upward" (anō) and "inward" (esō) according to the ancient custom to the plowing oxen, not knowing—out of ignorance—that these words are used in other ways; thinking that this is peculiar to oxen, being themselves more irrational than the oxen. But also among women there are certain lamentable ejaculations brought forward according to the ancients; for example, "iou," "aiboi." Likewise B also among the Lesbians, the "ō" which expresses astonishment is pronounced poetically, as is the temporal "teōs." And sometimes cursing one another, they say "karkinos" (cancer), according to an ancient prevalence; but they do not know why they say this. And this is among physicians a condition (pathos) often occurring in the breasts of women; and that which is among us "katbeiros." And the common (koinon) they do not know, but the "pagkoinon" (universal) they use for a time senselessly; just as also those in Pontus know "hlarion" as "the nail" (karphion), but not "hēlon" (nail)—and those in Cyprus, "hipparin," but not "hippon" (horse); just as also those in our own region know "dokarion" (small beam), but "dokon" (beam) least of all; and yet this is the same as if someone called a "wood" (xylon) a "woodlet" (xylarion); and they know "nēssarion" as the marsh bird, but "nēssan" (duck) not at all; and they know "parippion" (small horse) [in a compound and derivative sense, as it were, a doubly compound sense], but not "hippon" (horse); but rather "alogon" (irrational); and by "alogon" they mean not only a horse, but also an ox, and an ass, and all those that do not have reason.
A They say *psiloun* for "to shave" and *xyloun* for "to clear of wood," which in other places is called *helokopein*; but neither these nor those know what *psilon* is, and what *hyle* is, and what *helos* is, for the words used among them originate from these. Likewise, the Athonites, although they have the adverb of quantity *hapax* (once), yet they, like most people, say *dis* (twice), as when they say "twice in the hour," but if they happen to hear this in a book, they do not understand it. The Cypriots, by analogy, perhaps say *isos*; but others say *tacha*. Some in the islands understand *stochasmon* (conjecture), but others do not at all. And some have the vocative adverb *o*, others instead have *e*. And others, for "to look," say "to keep watch," others "to contemplate"—words which convey a different sense, even if they have some kinship. Others say *kytazein*, perhaps from *kyptazein*. And the Kytherians use participles generally, but others rarely, and not as they should. And others state the dialect *posos* (in a certain quantity), others *idion* (proper), and others *poson* (quantity), while remaining ignorant of *poion* (quality); yet just as *poion* being indefinite becomes a quality, so too *poson* becomes *poson*. The Zacynthians are fond of calling a target *skopon*, and something among them is called *skopian*. And the Methymnaeans call a meadow *leimona*, but also a small irrigated plot *libadion*. The Pontians know the names of the winds better, yet they say *ouk echo* (I do not have), whereas others say *den echo*. The Cretans say *inta thes* instead of "what do you want?" and *ti les*, instead of "what are you saying?" These, through elision, or removal, and contraction of syllables, are brought about in this way: either from the Attic *ouden* comes *den*, instead of *ou*; and from *ti eni to* and *ti eni ta* come *tinto* and *tinta*, as with the Lesbians. From which, among the Cretans and other lazy folk, comes *inta*. B
Almost no word of Scripture exists that is not in use throughout the world. But if some are not in use, it is not to be wondered at. For many things have fallen into oblivion or corruption due to negligence or the mingling of barbarians, as has been shown in the few words mentioned already. For how many names of birds, reptiles, quadrupeds, plants, fishes, insects, and wild beasts, and of the rest of those things that are in the world, do we not know! How then, if we found them in Scripture, could we understand them? For to each species of created things, names were assigned and defined from the beginning according to their use, assistance, or various virtues. It is said that Adam called by name all the cattle, and all the birds of the air, and all the wild beasts of the earth; just as Solomon also knew the positions of the stars, and the natures of plants and herbs. C But there are times when those who live far away in the fields speak more Hellenically and more technically than those in the cities, due to their simplicity; for those in the cities, out of vanity, wishing to change their speech into a more elegant form, rather corrupt it; and they foolishly mock and ridicule the country folk and rural people, just as they laugh at foreigners, and nation mocks nation, and city mocks city, because they do not speak the same words, not knowing what they assert. They suffer these things out of ignorance, as it has been said. For God, in the beginning, as has been de- D
demonstrated, A distributed dialects among the nations with skill, and they were established thus. Not only has our own dialect been diminished and altered, but so has that of the remaining nations. And of these, it is indeed diminished, but our own is altered even more, because we have been dispersed into diverse places.
For the remaining nations are not so spread out into diverse provinces and ancestral lands; whence the Scripture among them is simpler, yet not also varied and abundant in its vocabulary, because of the narrowness of the language, which happened to them on account of the inconvenience of their lands. No harm comes from this—even if one should speak of a partial change, or that which occurred universally at the building of the tower. For just as God is glorified through His diverse works, so also [is He] through diverse dialects. Diversity is proper to mutable things. He would certainly err who said that frequent wars are born from the diversity of languages, not seeing that B the Barbarians invade with civil wars just as do the Greeks. But we remain more stably within our mountains because of the difference of dialect, having the outsiders in hatred. Every good is from God, just as the opposite is from the adversary. Therefore, it is necessary to learn one's own dialect and not to neglect it, and not to reproach the writers, since it was not possible to write otherwise than in the ancient dialect. For if, as the ignorant suppose, they had published the Gospel and other things in the dialect of each country and city, so that all might understand them, the one Gospel—by the variation of dialects—would have become a hundred. Then, after some time, as the dialects changed, the Gospels would have had to be changed as well; and no region would have accepted the Gospel from another, if the contents were written in a foreign language; whence C would have come the splintering of the Scriptures into ten thousand forms, and a prompter destruction.
But, they say, how am I to learn? It is possible: just as you learned to read from one who knows, so too [you will learn] to understand; for reading is a sort of recognition. But, they say, I lack time, I lack money. What then? Is it better to waste time in trivialities, in drunken bouts, in obscene and empty conversations, in sleep, at dances, at the theater? And what is the money for? To be poured out and spent on feasts, on exquisite foods, on garments, on buildings, on horses and dogs? Grant some part to the soul. I do not tell you to give your whole life to a teacher; give the tenth part, or some small portion of D this. As much as you would spend on a wedding garment, spend that much on the spiritual one. For we are not all poor, or travelers, or drivers of donkeys or asses, so that we might fail on account of impediments. Poverty has not weighed upon us, as it did in the beginning. Did not John of Damascus learn from a captive teacher? Did he not live in a dwelling burned by the Barbarians, with the Barbarians and the faithless holding the region? Whence did he find so many books, both of external and of our own wisdom, which he mentions in his writings? It is manifest that
A literary zeal, once aflame, is now reduced to nothing. Learn from the ancient Law of the priests and Levites who served the Law—that is, the temple and the letters—who obtained all necessities from their brethren without any difficulty through tithes, firstlings of animals, first-fruits, sacrifices, and gifts. But here, everything is turned to the contrary. Those who possess the Word stand below, lacking everything; but whoever is a peddler or a turncoat is raised to thrones and accumulates wealth from every source for no use at all. They do not want to see anyone philosophizing, thinking this an indictment of their own lawlessness. They call such persons triflers, unstable, insubordinate, and faint-hearted, because they do not submit to them in their follies. It is not enough for them to walk in darkness, B but they also compel others to walk therein. And if anywhere one of the superiors is found to be sensible, and desires to grant rest to someone who is more knowledgeable, all are scandalized at this more than anything else; they judge, they envy, they are in turmoil; saying, "Why this? Why is this man superior to us? Why is he held in such esteem? He is this and that." They forget themselves in order to scrutinize his entire life; they examine even the smallest faults as if they were phantoms, and lie in wait for him as for a difficult enemy. Sometimes they openly accuse him and stir up everything so as to throw him from his position, and afterwards they mock, saying: "Do you see him destitute of a dwelling? Because he was such and such a person, wherever he goes, he has no place to stay." Moreover, another superior C will not say: "Would that I could give relief to that man!" but with anger says: "Would that I might have him in chains, in the galley, in a dungeon! If I had him in my power, I would teach him to remain in his status." Alas for such hardness and inhumanity!
Who, hearing such things, would not be sad? Therefore, those who appear to follow the path of reason are of a base and miserable lot. But in certain monasteries, crippled people are received and cared for, and for the sake of one crippled person, the collective aid is given; yet they do not care for a teacher, though he be but one, nor for the utility which he imparts to many on account of his knowledge. And indeed, though he causes them no labor or trouble, nor follows them with any vengeance, yet as if in defense they bring forward this: D "We know that all the originators of heresies were grammarians and rhetoricians." But understand this, O most prudent of animals, since you are joined to the number of those people: Who were they who followed the heresiarchs, and who were they who cast them down by refuting them? Whose are the commentaries from which you drew what you say? Who are they who daily abjure Christ and cleave to Muhammad? And who, rather, is that man himself? What learning and wisdom did he possess to have become the author of such and so great a heresy? And which is better: to be good and miserable, or miserable and atheists, like certain nations that lie in the furthest parts of the earth, barbaric, dunderheaded, and ignorant of letters? If ignorance is a fine thing, why do you learn them at all? For if it is fine that those things which...
are said through these should not be known, then not to learn them at all is most fine; for it is safer to keep away from evil. And if this is the case, how shall I not judge you unjust, seeing that you often judge and blame the Colchians and Abasgians because they do not speak Greek, being of another tongue—just as if you were to blame the Hellenists because they do not speak barbarically? But to whom shall I compare you, unless to apes and certain birds that mimic the habits and voice of men, but do not know the things being done? For which reason they are often caught by the crafty through their own mimicries. For you too learn the letters, but you do not know why; and so, while writing and reading, you are caught sinning by anyone at all—not to say, by yourself. Compose your own scriptures, since you reject the ancient ones; summon the master Cartan, whom you already have.
B They often mock the grammarians who teach the children the declensions of nouns and verbs. "What is this?" they say, "different letters?" Yes, different letters; for it is one thing to know them irrationally, and another to know them with understanding. For we do not admire him who knows a plant simply, as much as we admire him who knows also its power; nor do we approve of one who blows the trumpet unskillfully, as we do of one who does it clearly. Tell me, if a child, or someone else who does not know letters, were to say to you: "What is this *alpha* which you say to me, and what is the *beta*?"—for the names seem foreign to me—what would you have to answer, except that there is no time now for such things, and one must simply obey by hearing? Thus it is necessary to think also concerning every art: one must approach the master, and, being compliant, learn by degrees. C If you approach a grammarian, he will show you why we do not always say "Paulus" when there is need to speak of him, but also "Pauli," and "Paulo," and "Paulum." As in an example: "And Paul said to them"; and again, "And in Athens, while Paul was expecting them"; and in another place: "The Lord said through a vision in the night to Paul"; and again, "They ceased beating Paul"; and, "Take heart, Paul." Such is the difference also in other nouns, just as it is in verbs; as for example: "Amen, amen, I say to you"; and in another: "What do you say about him, that he opened your eyes?" And in another evangelist: "How do they say that Christ is the Son of David?" and David himself says in the book of Psalms.
D And not only do they mock the grammarians sometimes, but also one another, when it is a matter of reading or writing. For thus does wickedness know how not to be consistent even with itself. For what I mean is: *sykē* is a tree, and *sykya* is a surgical instrument. They mock then and deride the names on account of the similarity of sound, not knowing the difference in the elements. Being thus disposed, they will even act haughtily toward God at times, saying to Abraham: "No longer shall your name be called Abram, but Abraham shall your name be, for I have made you the father of many nations." And concerning his wife: "Her name shall no longer be called Sarra, but Sarah." In what, indeed, does one see
or Sarah, but [rather] Sabbat? For what difference does it make to them whether the names are written in this way or that? A We have, therefore, gone through these matters, forced [to do so] by the senseless; or rather, pitying them for their levity. May our Lord Jesus Christ, the Word and Power and Wisdom of God and the Father, deliver them from such error and such blindness, insensibility, and conceit; and may He grant us a way out of these difficulties, so that, having spent the present life in peace, piety, and holiness, we may pass over to the life that is truly blessed in Him; to Whom be glory and the adoration of all, with the Father and His divine Spirit, now and always, and for ever and ever. Amen.
Some other things from the same codex I here subjoin concerning a certain Cartan, a Corcyrean, a foolish and obscure impostor.
CONCERNING THE CARTANITE HERETICS
B The Cartanites are also [called] Joannicians. These, although they seem to be attached to the See of Constantinople, nevertheless receive, some secretly and others openly, the writings of Joannicius the Cartan, from whom they also derive their name. He had his origin from Corcyra; and he championed most of the doctrines of heresies that had already been extinguished, as well as those not yet discovered.
For he calls God "Grace." He says that God in the beginning created a certain matter, dense, formless, and unstable, out of which He fashioned man and the other creatures, ruling by means of the four elements. C Regarding the pre-eminence of each element, he teaches that the animal element is black, another [is] blue—the former greater and violent, the latter lesser and mild. Always, instead of "creation," he uses the term "generation" or "nativity," whereby he declares that the creatures are similar to the Creator. In another chapter, he presumes that God made man and the soul out of nothing; and to explain this, he says that the Virgin conceived God at the word of the angel, and [that] she brought forth this God-and-simultaneously-man, without the working of nature, and thus that man [is] eternal, without beginning, without end. He affirms that the wicked angels, having been expelled by God, fell into the abyss, and that, on account of their pride, it rained upon them for nine days and as many nights, which is written in the sacred Books. He [interprets] the light separated from the darkness as being [decimated] by half, and certainly the good angels [separated] from the wicked angels. [He claims] that every animal has the power of reason, for example, the ant. D [He claims] that all matter, namely trees, stones, plants, water, fire, and earth, grows by being mixed and transplanted, just as it is with living creatures. Adam, according to one opinion, was created in heaven, and, according to another,
it is said to have been in the regions of Egypt, in the plain of Damascus, and from there he was translated to India, where the paradise is also.
He further says A that the devil took the form of a serpent having a human face, and thus deceived our forebears; and that just as the devil became a man and deceived Eve, so also God became a man from a woman's womb and saved us all. He further says that after their exile from paradise, the first-created, wishing to fast for their own sin, were tempted by the devil; and the devil, being asked by Adam for what reason he tempted them, answered: "Since you were created by God, all the angels along with Michael were ordered by Him to stand before you, who are His image, praying and venerating you, which they did. But when I, with those with me, was ordered to do this and did not, but on the contrary sought veneration from you—since I was born before you and was boasting that I was also like God—I demanded to be venerated by you; but by God's command, the angels cast me down from the face of the earth into the abyss B." He further says that the wheels were fiery, and [Michael] took Adam upon them into paradise, before God, whose face shone with a most radiant flame; Michael having been sent with a chariot of wind, by which he was caught up.
He further says that for Christ being born, a garment descended from heaven; and this, he says, is the seamless tunic that the evangelist mentions, and upon it the power of God descended. He further says that within the visible sky dwell the powers of the heavens and the souls of the righteous; but into the invisible [heaven], Christ alone entered. He further says that the evangelists received the genealogy of the Son of God from certain books preserved at Rome C, which contain the genealogies of all. He further says that the angel said to the Virgin: "Know that the Holy Spirit is with you, and He Himself will be incarnate in you, and will become man, and you shall call Him Emmanuel; and He shall save the race of the Christians from the hands of the devil." And that the whole Holy Trinity was incarnate, because the three are similar and inseparable. He further says that of the Magi who came from the East to venerate Christ, one saw Him as an infant of one year, another as a thirty-year-old man, and another as a man grown very old. And that while the Lord was yet a child, He performed signs; for He raised a dead man, and He would walk upon the rays of the sun, and bring water to His mother in His garment, and, having stretched a beam, made it longer as was necessary, and fashioned living birds from clay. But who could recount every blasphemy of Cartan in the book of his popular deception? For almost nothing sound is found in it. D
ON THE HERESY OF THE CARTANITES
In our own times the multi-headed heresy of the Cartanites appeared. For a certain Cartan, a Corcyrean—a monk by habit, a priest, at least in rank—having sailed to Aquileia for the sake of commerce, and having fallen there into shameful deeds, was cast into prison...
[...is] rejected. After he had remained in it for a long time, having nothing from which to prepare an exit, he came across apocryphal books, which A the Severians and Audians had used against the opinion of the holy Epiphanius; he even compiled the nonsense from the Manichaeans, so that he might demonstrate the Lord’s corporeal manifestation to be according to his own lust; as well as many other heretical controversies, which had already long since withered away through the teaching of the Fathers. Adding many more things which he had learned from the evil spirit, he composed a certain new Bible, with a barbarian and unfamiliar style, and many things that are obscure; even if he himself prides his work on the grounds that he intended clarity. And it might justifiably be said that by its simpler style, it would drive the unlearned into the abyss with a most violent propulsion, as those who do not know the divine Scriptures would apply their whole attention to a Bible of this sort. B Having thus organized such a work and published it in many copies by means of printing, he spread a pestilence from himself throughout the islands and the continent, and through every region where the Greek language is in use. This work reached us, first in one copy, which we determined to send to the bishop in whose diocese Cartanus was active, so that as a corrupter he might be kept under guard. But since we did not succeed with a second and third copy—works of the same type, and worthy alike of mud and fire, preserved like treasure by those who had lost their own—we briefly ran through it; and understanding how great the pestilence contained therein was, we took care, as much as lay in our power, to expose it. Therefore, we have arranged the execrable heresies of this Bible, and however many lies Cartanus told about divine Scripture and its interpreters in the part of the book written by him, as it were in a chapter; avoiding his wordy barbarism, and refuting his lies with tempered argumentation, for the sake of those who are utterly ignorant of the doctrines of the Church.
The heresies and foolish babblings of the accursed Cartanus, and their refutation.
1°. That he attributes to John of Damascus the Trinitarian canons which everyone knows to have been composed by Metrophanes in honor of the Trinity. 2°. That he calls God "Grace," which is nowhere written, because it is also inapposite. 3°. That according to Plato, etc.
Pachomius the Monk's Prologue to Grammar
Truly, the human race is inquisitive, and always studies to learn and possess something new, as the Ecclesiastes says. Just as everywhere, Initium: "Utterly inquisitive is the human race, and always thinks to learn and possess new things," as the Ecclesiastes says. "Which...
A so it happened among grammarians also, who at various times have brought forth different books on their art and science. And they differ but little in their thinking, differing only in composition, restriction, and extension. Now up to the time of Lord Manuel Moschopulos, who embraced the same religion as us, the works of the ancients were in strength; for example, the Art of Dionysius Thrax; the book of the grammarian Theodosius of Alexandria on the declension of nouns and verbs, and on the breathing marks; the work of Patriarch Sophronius on orthography; also the rules of John the Grammarian, the Kharax, and of Timotheus of Gaza; the work of Patriarch Sophronius on prepositions; the commentary of Sergius the Reader of Emesa on Aelius Herodian; the work of Theodoret on the breathing marks of the eight letters from Herodian to Patricius; B the work of Herodian on tenses, on figures, and other things; an epitome of accentual precepts by John the Grammarian of Alexandria; the work of the monk Michael and the Syncellus on syntax; and the works of certain other Greeks and Christians, whose books we have found at different times, some together and some scattered and in part in manuscript; only the works of Apollonius did we encounter in copperplate, or rather, in print.
The aforementioned Lord Manuel, having examined everything well, and having discovered some things of his own here and there, produced two books as may be seen, called Questions and Exercises, which are very clear and varied, and offer great benefit to beginners; these even now hold authority among students of literature. C But since the Empire of the Romans was captured by the frequent tyrannies and sieges and vanished, as many of the learned as were saved left their homeland and chose a foreign land, and dwelt there with the books they had carried away; among whose number were Lord Manuel Chrysoloras, (the words "Demetrius Chalcondyles" are deleted), Theodore Gazes, [and] Constantine Lascaris, who exchanged Thrace for Italy. From this they were moved, either by ambition or misfortune and the barbarism of the place, or I know not for what other reasons, to compose various books. Chrysoloras, following in the footsteps of the ancients, edited a brief book, caring little for the definitions and rules of grammar, but contributing greatly to those still D in need of milk. But Lord Theodore, having labored much, and himself walking in the footsteps of those before him, published his entire treatise in four books: the first containing whatever is common to all grammarians and necessary for memorization; the second, the rules of noun and verb; the third, on prosody and orthography; and the fourth, on syntax.
After him, Constantine, having set out to explain the same subject in three books, in the first likewise discussed those things that pertain to introduction, in the second on syntax, and in the third on the rules pertaining to nouns and verbs. Some have set forth the rules of Moschopulos in a concise manner; now others
A have also abridged those of Chrysoloras, omitting the rules, perhaps with the intention that students might not be hindered in their study of writing and speaking. But these men differ from one another as widely as heaven is from earth. For some pursued brevity to such an extent that they even neglected many useful things; in whose number is Theodore, who set out to include as much as possible in a very brief epitome. Constantine, by contrast, in his third book, set forth the rules indeed at great length, but did not say a word about the various declensions, or initial and final letters: the result of which was that one grammar required another. Furthermore, they also differ regarding declension and conjugation and certain other chapters: in short, to speak in a word, this method of treating grammar created much confusion for the students, since some were learning one thing and others another, inasmuch as individual books were not sufficient for instruction, so that a student was forced to acquire all of them for himself. Wherefore, having collected all the grammars, I had decided to elaborate one volume digested through the various books, in such a way that, having taken from each those things which seemed suitable, I might compress those voluminous books into one volume, yet without omitting anything.
But I desisted from this attempt, fearing that while I was compiling the work of others and thus clothing myself, as it were, in borrowed finery, I would at the same time incur laughter, after the manner of the jay in the fables. For this reason I deemed it right to abandon such a task. Those things, however, which have been stated by more recent writers, as I said, concisely and by a new method, these I also have composed in order in this book with great diligence: partly those things which are common to all grammarians, as we said above, so that beginners might easily understand them; and partly a system of grammar and the other parts of speech, in the manner of commentaries and rules, so that our exposition might be adapted to the grasp of students and easy to understand: then the grammar of the master Matthew Camariota, which contains in epitome the grammar of Moschopulos and certain other things, as a sort of first fruits of the whole art: then I discoursed on poetic tropes, and also on meters and dialects, which are acknowledged to be parts and instruments of grammar. B Similarly, we explained other things, of which the more recent grammarians made no mention at all, or which they treated less clearly and too concisely. Now, indeed, if the Lord will grant us, besides life and health, leisure and a firm will, we shall gird ourselves to clear up the difficulties that are wont to arise for beginners, hoping that we shall bring forth an excellent work and one of good fruit. C Furthermore, I advise the students not to neglect other works, for example, the third book of Lascaris, and the third and fourth books of Theodore, and that they should procure for themselves a lexicon, especially that compiled by Varinus, which is most useful primarily for orthography, etymology, and history, and contains many other excellent things: if anyone works at these with a grain of salt and diligently, he will receive much profit from them and will progress day by day. D