On the Newly Baptized
De recens baptizatis
The Fragrance of the New Life§1
1Concerning the newly baptized by the blessed Amphilochius, Bishop of Iconium, for the resurrection of our Savior Jesus Christ.
When the gloom of winter is passed by the season of spring, various birds flying through the air signify the sweetness of the season to men with honeyed songs; then also sweet swallows, cutting the air with sharp flight and running past the heads of men, strike the local sound of a flower's bloom into the ears of men. Then it is possible to see the air clear and the clouds and the faces of men bright, being adjusted as an imitation of serenity; for indeed the sounds of birds delight the hearing, and the clear air brightens the eye, and the brilliance of various flowers sweetens the sight, and the manifold breath of the herbs restores the sense of smell.
And this delight indeed it provides to men, beloved, the earthly and near spring; but our divine and incorruptible spring, Christ, having thickened the meadow of the church with spiritual violets, roses, and lilies, brightens the sight through faith and fills the receptacle of our heart with the fragrance of the divine. For who among the faithful is not now rejoicing? And who now does not exult, when he sees the newly baptized shining like bright lilies within the folds of their garments, and having obtained the golden faith in the midst of their heart? There you will find, beloved, having gazed with the eyes of the heart, the heart of the faithful as a deep violet, being made purple by the blood of Jesus; for the flame-leaved rose from the Virgin Mary...
Destruction has been driven out. What kind of meadow has acquired such a fragrance as our meadow, because of the perfuming of the Spirit? Smell the newly enlightened one and you will find in him the immortal fragrance of the Spirit, that is to say, the myrrh of the heavenly anointing.
Here, like the fathers, the phoenixes, having cut off the heavy weights of victory, yield sweeter fruits of love; here the birds of beautiful voices, the psalmists, sing the psalms in harmony with God; here the virgin, offering to God the pure incense of prayer like a clean dove, rejoices; here temperance, sacrificing the branch of purity to God like Abraham sacrificed Isaac, delights; here the branches of mercy, bearing much fruit, extending the branch of goodness to the poor, delight the Lord and nourish the needy.
Let the virgin sing, saying: 'Let my prayer be directed as incense before you, Lord' (Ps 141:2). Let the merciful man say: 'But I am like a green olive tree flourishing in the house of God; for he shall blossom like a phoenix, and shall increase like a cedar in Lebanon' (Ps 52:8).
Now the gloomy winter of the devil has fled and the bright radiance of the heavenly meadow has dawned; now the mourning of the dead has been driven away, for the light of the resurrection has come. Let us all sing together the new song, for it is fitting for the new citizenship to have a new and blessed song. Let us sing the new song, for behold Adam has been made new, for the old sin has vanished, behold all things have become new. Let us sing the new song, for behold Adam has been made new and Eve has been carried into the heavens, for the devil into the...
Greek · §1
De recens baptizatis Τοῦ μακαρίου Ἀμφιλοχίου ἐπισκόπου Ἰκονίου περὶ τῶν νεοφωτίστων καὶ εἰς τὴν ἀνάστασιν τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ. Ὁπόταν τὸ σκυθρωπὸν τοῦ χειμῶνος ὁ τοῦ ἔαρος καιρὸς διαδέξηται, ποικίλοι ὄρνεις ἀνὰ τὸν αἰθέρα πετόμενοι μελιφώνοις ᾠδαῖς τὸ ἡδὺ τοῦ καιροῦ τοῖς ἀνθρώποις σημαίνουσιν· τότε καὶ χελιδόνες ἡδύλαλοι ὀξείᾳ πτήσει τὸν ἀέρα τέμνουσαι καὶ τὰς τῶν ἀνθρώπων κεφαλὰς παρατρέχουσαι δίκην ἄνθους τὴν οἰκείαν κλαγγὴν τοῖς ὠσὶν τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐμβάλλουσιν. Τότε ἔστιν ἰδεῖν καθαρὸν τὸν ἀέρα καὶ νήνεμον καὶ τὰς τῶν ἀνθρώπων ὄψεις φαιδρὰς εἰς μίμημα τῆς γαλήνης μεταρρυθμιζομένας· καὶ γὰρ ὀρνέων φθογγαὶ τέρπουσιν ἀκοὴν καὶ ἀὴρ καθαρὸς φαιδρύνει τὸ ὄμμα καὶ ποικίλων ἀνθῶν στιλβότης ἡδύνει τὴν ὅρασιν καὶ ἡ πολυμιγὴς πνοὴ τῶν βοτανῶν ἀνακτᾶται τὴν ὄσφρησιν. Καὶ ταύτην μὲν τὴν τερπνότητα τοῖς ἀνθρώποις παρέχει, ἀγαπητοί, τὸ ἐπίγειον καὶ ἐπίκηρον ἔαρ· τὸ δὲ θεῖον καὶ ἀκήρατον ἔαρ ἡμῶν Χριστὸς τὸν λειμῶνα τῆς ἐκκλησίας ἴων καὶ ῥόδων καὶ κρίνων πνευματικῶν πυκάσας τῇ πίστει φαιδρύνει τὴν ὅρασιν καὶ ἀρωμά των θείων τὴν δεξαμενὴν τῆς καρδίας ἡμῶν πληροῖ. Τίς γὰρ τῶν πιστῶν νῦν οὐκ εὐφραίνεται; Τίς δὲ νῦν οὐκ ἀγάλλεται, ὅτε ὁρᾷ τοὺς νεοφωτίστους ἐν εἰκόνι κρίνων λαμ προῖς τοῖς κάλυξιν τῶν πέπλων καταλάμποντας καὶ ἐν μέσῃ τῇ καρδίᾳ κεκτημένους τὴν χρυσαυγοῦσαν πίστιν; Ἐνταῦθα εὑρή σεις, ἀγαπητέ, ὀφθαλμοῖς καρδίας ἀτενίσας ἴου δίκην βαθυτάτου τὴν τῶν πιστῶν καρδίαν αἵματι Ἰησοῦ πορφυρίζουσαν· τὸ γὰρ φλογόφυλλον ῥόδον ἐκ τῆς παρθένου Μαρίας ἀφθόρως ἐξήνθη σεν. Ποῖος λειμὼν τοιαύτην εὐωδίαν κέκτηται οἵαν ὁ ἡμέτερος λειμὼν τὴν τοῦ πνεύματος ἀρωματίζουσαν χάριν; Ὄσφρησαι τὸν νεοφώτιστον καὶ εὑρήσεις ἐν αὐτῷ τὴν τοῦ πνεύματος ἀθάνατον εὐωδίαν, λέγω δὴ τὸ τοῦ οὐρανίου χρίσματος μύρον. Ὧδε τῶν πατέρων οἱ φοίνικες τοῖς βαΐοις τῆς νίκης κατεστεμμένοι γλυκυτέρους τοὺς καρποὺς τῆς ἀγάπης κυπρίζουσιν· ὧδε τὰ καλλί φθογγα ὄρνεα τῶν ψαλμῳδῶν ὁμοφώνως τῷ θεῷ τοὺς ψαλμοὺς λυρῳδοῦσιν· ὧδε ἡ παρθενία δίκην στύρακος καθαρὸν τὸ θυμία μα τῆς εὐχῆς τῷ θεῷ προσκομίζουσα χαίρει· ὧδε ἡ σωφροσύνη ἱλαρὸν τὸν κλάδον τῆς ἁγνείας ὡς Ἀβραὰμ τὸν Ἰσαὰκ τῷ θεῷ θυσιάζουσα τέρπεται· ὧδε τὰ τῶν ἐλεῶν στελέχη πολύκαρπον τὸν κλάδον τῆς εὐποιΐας τοῖς πένησι προβαλλόμενα τέρπουσι μὲν τὸν κύριον, τρέφουσι δὲ τὸν πτωχόν. Ἡ παρθενία ᾀδέτω λέγουσα· Κατευθυνθήτω ἡ προσευχή μου ὡς θυμίαμα ἐνώπιόν σου, κύριε. Ὁ ἐλεήμων λεγέτω· Ἐγὼ δὲ ὡσεὶ ἐλαία κατάκαρπος ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ τοῦ θεοῦ· δίκαιος γὰρ ὡς φοῖνιξ ἀνθήσει, ὡσεὶ κέδρος ἡ ἐν τῷ Λιβάνῳ πληθυνθήσεται. Νῦν τὸ σκυθρωπὸν τοῦ διαβολικοῦ χειμῶνος πέφευγεν καὶ τὸ ἱλαρὸν τοῦ οὐρανίου λειμῶνος ἀνέλαμψεν· νῦν τὸ πένθος τῶν νεκρῶν ἐδραπετεύθη, τὸ γὰρ φέγγος τῆς ἀναστάσεως ἐλήλυθεν. Ἄσωμεν πάντες ὁμοῦ τὸ ᾆσμα τὸ καινόν, πρέπει γὰρ τῇ καινῇ πολιτείᾳ τὸ καινὸν καὶ μακάριον ᾆσμα. Ἄσωμεν τὸ ᾆσμα τὸ καινόν, ἰδοὺ γὰρ Ἀδὰμ ἀνεκαινίσθη, ἡ γὰρ παλαιὰ ἁμαρτία ἠφάνισται, ἰδοὺ γέγονεν πάντα καινά. Ἄσωμεν τὸ ᾆσμα τὸ καινόν, ἰδοὺ γὰρ Ἀδὰμ ἀνεκαινίσθη καὶ Εὔα εἰς οὐρανοὺς ἀνεκομίσθη, ὁ γὰρ διάβολος εἰς τὸ
The Song of Victory in Baptism§2
2Fire was kindled. Let us use that song of Miriam the sister of Moses, for it is fitting for us now just as it was for them then. Let the choir of those saints also be present with us and let it sing what it used to sing then upon the Red Sea: 'Let us sing to the Lord,' (Exod 15:1) for He has been gloriously glorified. For what has He done? He cast horse and rider into the sea. Horse and rider: the horse being the female sin, and the rider being the demon sitting upon sin, whom He drove down into the bath of the baptismal font. Let us therefore sing to the Lord, for He has been gloriously glorified; for He cast Pharaoh and his power into the sea, that is, the devil and his darkness, and He turned the camp of his demons into a sea in the bath of baptism. I no longer fear to hear: 'You are earth and to earth you shall return'; (Ps 118:22) for in baptism I laid aside the earth and clothed myself with heaven. And I hear: 'You are heaven and to heavens you shall return'; (Rom 6:4) for all of you who were baptized into Christ, you clothed yourselves with Christ. As the swine are, so are those swine, and as the heavenly are, so are the heavenly. We must mount upon clouds and fly up into the heavens; the word is not without witness, listen to Paul saying: 'We shall be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and thus we shall always be with the Lord.' (1 Thess 4:17) Therefore, just as we recently heard our psalmist exhorting and saying: 'This is the day which the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.' (Ps 118:24) Let us therefore rejoice, not being intoxicated or darkened by stupor, for this would not be joy but folly and the darkening of the heart. Let us rejoice, leaping in the Spirit, let us rejoice, feasting on love, rejoicing in hope. And if we must conceive of another joy of the heart, having received the heavenly bread with pure palms, let us send forth the soul with the provision of eternal life. Having received with pure palms, I say, not washed in common water, but shining with goodness. And let us fill ourselves with the divine and heavenly mixture with rose-colored lips, not reddening with some Phoenician dye, but turning purple with the blood of Jesus Christ. O great day, truly and good, in which the Lamb is slaughtered and the world is purchased and our Shepherd lives: 'For I am,' (John 10:11) He says, 'the good Shepherd.' O new mystery and wondrous paradox! The Cross stood and Christ was hung, and an unjust death was what appeared, and a holy chamber was what was happening; a cross was what appeared and a sowing was what was being completed: yesterday He was sown and today a people is harvested. O death of Christ, death of death, springing sweet life out of the most bitter death! O mystery of Abraham being fulfilled in Christ! Isaac upon the altar...
Greek · §2
πῦρ ἐσκελίσθη. Χρησώμεθα παρὰ Μαρίας τῆς ἀδελφῆς Μωϋσέως τὸ ᾆσμα ἐκεῖνο, πρέπει γὰρ ἡμῖν νῦν ᾗπερ τότε ἐκείνοις. Συμπαρέστω ἡμῖν καὶ ὁ τῶν ἁγίων ἐκείνων χορὸς καὶ λεγέτω ὃ τότε ἐπὶ τῆς Ἐρυθρᾶς θαλάσσης ἐκελάδιζεν, τό· Ἄσωμεν τῷ κυρίῳ, ἐνδόξως γὰρ δεδόξασται. Τί γὰρ πεποίηκεν; Ἵππον καὶ ἀναβάτην ἔρριψεν εἰς θάλασσαν. Ἵππον καὶ ἀναβάτην· ἵππον μὲν τὴν θηλυμανῆ ἁμαρτίαν, ἀναβάτην δὲ τὸν ἐπὶ τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ καθήμενον δαίμονα ἐν τῷ βαπτίσματι τοῦ λουτροῦ κατεπόντισεν. Ἄσωμεν οὖν τῷ κυρίῳ, ἐνδόξως γὰρ δεδόξασται· τὸν γὰρ Φαραὼ καὶ τὴν δύναμιν αὐτοῦ ἔρριψεν εἰς θάλασσαν, τουτέστιν τὸν διάβολον καὶ τὸ σκοτεινὸν καὶ ἐναγὲς τῶν δαιμόνων αὐτοῦ στρατόπεδον ἐν τῷ λουτρῷ τοῦ βαπτίσματος ἐθαλάσσωσεν. Οὐκέτι φοβοῦμαι ἀκούειν· Γῆ εἶ καὶ εἰς γῆν ἀπελεύσῃ· ἐν γὰρ τῷ βαπτίσματι τὴν γῆν ἀπεθέμην καὶ οὐρανὸν ἐνεδυσάμην καὶ ἀκούω· οὐρανὸς εἶ καὶ εἰς οὐρανοὺς ἀπελεύσῃ· ὅσοι γὰρ εἰς Χριστὸν ἐβαπτίσθητε Χριστὸν ἐνεδύσασθε, καί· οἷος ὁ χοϊκός, τοιοῦτοι καὶ οἱ χοϊκοί, καὶ οἷος ὁ ἐπουράνιος, τοιοῦτοι καὶ οἱ ἐπουράνιοι. ∆εῖ ἡμᾶς νεφέλαις ἐπιβῆναι καὶ εἰς οὐρανοὺς ἀναδραμεῖν· οὐκ ἀμάρτυρος ὁ λόγος, ἄκουε τοῦ Παύλου λέγοντος· Ἁρπαγησόμεθα ἐν νεφέλαις εἰς ἀπάντησιν τοῦ κυρίου εἰς ἀέρα καὶ οὕτως πάντοτε σὺν κυρίῳ ἐσόμεθα. ∆ιὸ καθὼς ἠκούσαμεν ἀρτίως τοῦ ψαλμῳδοῦ ἡμῖν παραινοῦντος καὶ λέγον τος· Αὕτη ἡ ἡμέρα ἣν ἐποίησεν ὁ κύριος, ἀγαλλιασώμεθα καὶ εὐ φρανθῶμεν ἐν αὐτῇ. Ἀγαλλιασώμεθα οὖν οὐ μέθῃ καὶ κραιπάλῃ σκοτούμενοι, αὕτη γὰρ οὐκ ἂν εἴη εὐφροσύνη ἀλλὰ ἀφροσύνη καὶ σκοτομήνη καρδίας. Ἀγαλλιασώμεθα σκιρτῶντες τῷ πνεύματι, ἀγαλλιασώμεθα ἀγάπῃ ἑστιώμενοι, ἐλπίδι χαίροντες. Εἰ δὲ δεῖ καὶ ἑτέραν ἐννοεῖν εὐφροσύνην καρδίας, τὸν οὐράνιον ἄρτον καθαραῖς παλάμαις ὑποδεξάμενοι τῇ ψυχῇ παραπέμψωμεν ζωῆς αἰωνίου ἐφόδιον ὄντα· καθαραῖς παλάμαις ὑποδεξάμενοι λέγω δέ, οὐχ ὕδατι κοινῷ πεπλυμέναις, ἀλλ' εὐποιΐαις λαμπρυνομέναις. Καὶ τὸ θεῖον καὶ οὐράνιον κρᾶμα ῥοδοείδεσι χείλεσιν ἀρυσώμεθα, οὐ φοίνικί τινι ἐρυθαίνοντες, ἀλλὰ τῷ αἵματι Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ πορφυρίζοντες. Ὦ μεγάλης ὡς ἀληθῶς καὶ ἀγαθῆς ἡμέρας, ἐν ᾗ ὁ ἀμνὸς σφαγιάζεται καὶ ὁ κόσμος ἀγοράζεται καὶ ὁ ποιμὴν ἡμῶν ζῇ· Ἐγὼ γάρ εἰμι, φησίν, ὁ ποιμὴν ὁ καλός. Ὦ μυστηρίου καινοῦ καὶ θαύματος παραδόξου! Σταυρὸς ἔστη καὶ Χριστὸς ἐφηπλώθη καὶ θάνατος ἄδικος ἦν τὸ φαινόμενον καὶ θάλαμος ἅγιος ἦν τὸ γινόμενον, σταυρὸς ἦν τὸ φαινόμενον καὶ παστὸς ἦν τὸ τελούμε νον· χθὲς ἀνέστη παστὸς καὶ σήμερον ἐτέχθη λαός. Ὦ θάνατος Χριστοῦ, θανάτου θάνατος καὶ γλυκεῖαν ζωὴν ἐν τῷ πικροτάτῳ θανάτῳ πηγάζων! Ὦ μυστηρίου Ἀβραμιαίου ἐν Χριστῷ τελουμένου! Ἰσαὰκ ἐπὶ τὸ θυσιαστήριον
The Cross as the Sail of Salvation§3
3A lamb was being slaughtered in place of him, and the Son of God was being carried upon a cross and was being crucified in the flesh for our sake, and while the flesh was suffering, the divinity did not suffer. The sail of the cross stood in the ship of the world and the world remained unsinkable; by this sail of the cross, the one sailing does not know the shipwreck of death, but sails upward toward the heavens.
Eve no longer fears the reproach of Adam, for in Mary the fall of that Adam has been raised up again; Adam no longer fears the serpent, for Christ has crushed the head of the dragon (Rev 12:9); for He says, 'For you have crushed the head of the dragon upon the water' (Ps 118:11), that is, upon baptism. I no longer mourn, I no longer weep saying, 'I have turned into misery by having a thorn enter me' (Ps 118:17); for Christ, having uprooted the thorn of our sins, has placed it upon His own head. My ancient sorrow is loosed, the ancient curse which says, 'Thorns and thistles the earth shall yield to you' (Gen 3:18), is loosed; for the thorns have dried up, the thistle has been uprooted, and a triple crown has been placed upon my head.
Who among Jews and Greeks believes that a tree stood and produced life? And every day among the faithful it is harvested, and the fruit remains inexhaustible; and every tribe and every nation of the faithful ascends this tree by a step of the soul and fills the bosom of the mind with immortal fruit, and the tree carries all and feeds all and seals and enriches all, and after these things propels them toward the heavens. For what did Christ not endure for our sake?
We are not able to enumerate His names, but I venture to say, beloved: door, way, lamb, shepherd, worm, stone, pearl, flower, angel, man, God, light, spring, sun of righteousness. The many-named Christ is one existing; the Son is many-named and being one, not turning, not changing, for the divinity is unchangeable; but fitting Himself to each thing according to the energy, having assigned a proper name to each energy. And let us see, beloved, if we are able to present the energy by each name.
He heard 'Way'; for 'I am the way and the truth' (John 14:6), He says, since He Himself has become the leader of all virtues and of the ascent into the heavens. The same heard 'Door'; for 'I am the door of the sheep' (John 10:7), since through Him, just as through doors, we enter into the kingdom of the heavens. He heard 'Salt,' since He has dispelled the stench of the idolatry of men and has drawn our souls toward the homecoming of piety by faith and has tightened the loosened members of the mind by the truth. He heard 'Lamb'; for 'as a lamb to the slaughter he was led, and as a lamb before the shearer' (Isa 53:7).
Greek · §3
συνεποδίζετο καὶ ἀμνὸς ἀντ' αὐτοῦ ἐσφάζετο, καὶ ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ ἐπὶ σταυροῦ ἀνεφέρετο καὶ τῇ σαρκὶ ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν ἐσταυροῦτο καὶ πάσχουσα ἡ σὰρξ ἡ θεότης οὐκ ἔπασχεν. Ἔστη τὸ ἱστίον τοῦ σταυροῦ ἐν τῷ πλοίῳ τοῦ κόσμου καὶ ὁ κόσμος ἀναυάγητος ἔμεινεν· τούτῳ τῷ ἱστίῳ τοῦ σταυροῦ ὁ πλέων ναυάγιον θανάτου οὐκ οἶδεν, ἀλλὰ εἰς οὐρανοὺς ἀναπλέει. Οὐκέτι Εὔα φοβεῖται τὸν ὀνειδισμὸν τοῦ Ἀδάμ, ἐν γὰρ Μαρίᾳ τὸ ταύτης πταῖσμα ἀνασέσωσται· οὐκέτι Ἀδὰμ φοβεῖται τὸν ὄφιν, Χριστὸς γὰρ συνέτριψεν τὴν κεφαλὴν τοῦ δράκοντος· Σὺ γάρ, φησίν, συνέτριψας τὴν κεφαλὴν τοῦ δράκοντος ἐπὶ τοῦ ὕδατος, τουτέστιν ἐπὶ τοῦ βαπτίσματος. Οὐκέτι πενθῶ, οὐκέτι κλαίω λέγων· Ἐστράφην εἰς ταλαιπωρίαν ἐν τῷ ἐμπαγῆναί μοι ἄκανθαν· ἐλθὼν γὰρ ὁ Χριστὸς τὴν ἄκανθαν τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν ἡμῶν ἐκριζώσας τῇ ἑαυτοῦ κεφαλῇ ἐπέθηκεν. Λέλυταί μου ἡ ἀρχαία λύπη, λέλυται ἡ παλαιὰ ἀρὰ ἡ λέγουσα· Ἀκάνθας καὶ τριβόλους ἀνατελεῖ σοι ἡ γῆ· ἐξηράνθησαν γὰρ αἱ ἄκανθαι, ἐξεριζώθη ὁ τρίβολος καὶ τρίπλοκος στέφανος τῇ κεφαλῇ μου ἐπετέθη. Τίς Ἰουδαίων καὶ Ἑλλήνων πιστεύει ὅτι ξύλον ἔστη καὶ ζωὴν ἐξήνθησεν; καὶ καθ' ἑκάστην ἡμέραν ὑπὸ πιστῶν τρυγᾶται καὶ ὁ καρπὸς ἀδαπάνητος μένει· καὶ πᾶσα φυλὴ καὶ πᾶν ἔθνος πιστῶν ἐπὶ τοῦτο τὸ δένδρον βήματι ψυχῆς ἀναβαίνει καὶ τὸν κόλπον τῆς διανοίας ἀθανάτου καρποῦ πληροῖ, καὶ πάντας βαστάζει τὸ δένδρον καὶ πάντας χορτάζει καὶ σφραγίζει καὶ πλουτίζει καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα εἰς οὐρανοὺς ἀκοντίζει. Τί γὰρ δι' ἡμᾶς οὐχ ὑπέμεινεν κληθῆναι Χριστός; Οὐ δυνάμεθα ἐξαριθμήσασθαι αὐτοῦ τὰ ὀνόματα, ἐπιχείρω δὲ λέγειν, ἀγαπητοί· θύρα, ὁδός, πρόβατον, ποιμήν, σκώληξ, λίθος, μαργαρίτης, ἄνθος, ἄγγελος, ἄνθρωπος, θεός, φῶς, πηγή, ἥλιος δικαιοσύνης. Ὁ πολυώνυμος Χριστὸς καὶ εἷς ὑπάρχων, πολυώνυμος ὁ υἱὸς καὶ εἷς ὢν οὐ τρεπόμενος, οὐ μεταβαλλόμενος, ἄτρεπτος γὰρ ἡ θεότης· ἀλλ' ἑκάστῳ πράγματι κατὰ τὴν ἐνέργειαν ἁρμοζόμενος ἴδιον ὄνομα ἑκάστῃ ἐνεργείᾳ τεθεικώς. Καὶ ἴδωμεν, ἀγαπητοί, εἰ δυνάμεθα ἑκάστῳ ὀνόματι τὴν ἐνέργειαν παραστῆσαι. Ὁδὸς ἤκουσεν· Ἐγὼ γάρ εἰμι, φησίν, ἡ ὁδὸς καὶ ἡ ἀλήθεια, ἐπειδὴ αὐτὸς ἀρχηγὸς πασῶν τῶν ἀρετῶν καὶ τῆς εἰς οὐρανοὺς ἀναβάσεως γέγονεν. Ὁ αὐτὸς θύρα· Ἐγὼ γάρ εἰμι ἡ θύρα τῶν προβάτων, ἐπειδὴ δι' αὐτοῦ καθάπερ διὰ θύρας εἰς τὴν τῶν οὐρανῶν βασιλείαν εἰσερχόμεθα. Ἅλας ἤκουσεν, ἐπειδὴ τὴν δυσωδίαν τῆς εἰδωλολατρείας τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἀπέσμηξεν καὶ τὰς ψυχὰς ἡμῶν πρὸς νοστὸν εὐσεβείας τῇ πίστει ἤρτυσεν καὶ τὰ λελυμένα μέλη τῆς διανοίας τῇ ἀληθείᾳ συνέσφιγξεν. Πρόβατον ἤκουσεν· Ὡς γὰρ πρόβατον ἐπὶ σφαγὴν ἤχθη καὶ ὡς ἀμνὸς ἐναντίον τοῦ κείραντος
The Sensory Recognition of Christ§4
4He heard him as speechless: a sheep heard through the slaughter and through the participation in his holy members and his immortal protection from the seal of his own holy blood. The Shepherd was heard: 'For I am the good shepherd' (John 10:11), because he restored the wandering sheep and killed our adversary the lion with the staff of the cross. The Pearl was heard, because he was born just like a pearl in a shell between two folds of a virgin body and soul, without the seed of a man, either because he was the ornament of the soul or because of his many-shining and pure nature, dazzling from every side with the splendor of divinity. The Light was heard, for it was the true light (John 1:9) which enlightens every man coming into the world, because he drove away the dark wandering of the ancient darkness from our intellect and opened the eyes of our ruling mind, so that we might truly see those whom we worshipped before, that they are not gods, but works of the hands of men, stones and wood. The Cornerstone was heard, because having built the two peoples like two walls through faith, he places himself upon them to draw together into one joint of salvation. The Sun of Righteousness was heard, because of his bright and warm nature—for there is no one who shall hide from his warmth—and because of the twelve-rayed light of the apostles. The Grain of Mustard Seed was heard (Matt 13:31), because it diminishes itself and descends with our infirmities according to the principles of faith, and then, having stained the furrows of our soul, it is spread into the depths, but is raised to a height like heaven, being warmed toward piety and prudence. The Worm was heard: 'For I am a worm and not a man' (Ps 22:6), because having hidden the dazzling divinity like a hook in the worm of the body, he cast him into this depth of life and, like a good fisherman, pulled him up to fulfill the written: 'You shall catch a dragon with a hook' (Ps 106:15). Man was heard, because he bore a body not having been conceived from pleasure and sleep, but having come to be from a virgin and the Holy Spirit. But since each of us, beloved, also receives the unstable teaching of the fathers, let us here seal our basket of words with the Holy Spirit, so that they, coming from the most excellent wisdom of our Lord Jesus Christ, may fill the vessels of our hearts, and each of you may bring forth much fruit of piety—one making thirty, another sixty, and another a hundred (Matt 21:31)—the crown of the angels, in Christ Jesus our Lord, with whom be glory, honor, and power to the Father, together with the Holy and life-giving Spirit, now and throughout all the ages of ages. Amen.
Greek · §4
αὐτὸν ἄφωνος· πρόβατον ἤκουσεν διὰ τὴν σφαγὴν καὶ διὰ τὴν τῶν ἁγίων μελῶν αὐτοῦ μετάλημψιν καὶ τὴν ἐκ τῆς τοῦ ἁγίου αἵματος αὐτοῦ σφραγίδος ἀθάνατον αὐτοῦ φυλακήν. Ποιμὴν ἤκουσεν· Ἐγὼ γάρ εἰμι ὁ ποιμὴν ὁ καλός, ἐπειδὴ τὰ πεπλανημένα πρόβατα ἐπέστρεψεν καὶ τὸν ἀντίδικον ἡμῶν λέοντα τῇ βακτηρίᾳ τοῦ σταυροῦ ἀπέκτεινεν. Μαργαρίτης ἤκουσεν διὰ τὸ αὐτὸν ὥσπερ μαργαρίτην ἐν μύακι ἀνὰ μέσον δύο πτυχῶν σώματος καὶ ψυχῆς παρθενικῆς ἄνευ σπορᾶς ἀνδρὸς γεγεννῆσθαι ἢ διὰ τὸ εἶναι αὐτὸν κόσμιον ψυχῆς ἢ διὰ τὸ πολυφεγγὲς αὐτοῦ καὶ καθαρὸν καὶ πανταχόθεν τῇ αἴγλῃ τῆς θεότητος ἐξάστραπτον. Φῶς ἤκουσεν, ἦν γὰρ τὸ φῶς τὸ ἀληθινόν, ὃ φωτίζει πάντα ἄνθρωπον ἐρχόμενον εἰς τὸν κόσμον, ἐπειδὴ τὴν ζοφερὰν πλάνην τῆς παλαιᾶς σκοτομήνης ἀπὸ τῆς διανοίας ἡμῶν ἀπήλασεν καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς τοῦ ἡγεμονικοῦ ἡμῶν νοῦ διήνοιξεν, ἵνα ἴδωμεν ἀληθῶς οἷς προσεκυνοῦμεν τὸ πρίν, ὅτι οὐκ εἰσὶ θεοί, ἀλλ' ἔργα χειρῶν ἀνθρώπων, λίθοι καὶ ξύλα. Λίθος ἀκρογωνιαῖος ἤκουσεν, ἐπειδὴ τοὺς δύο λαοὺς καθάπερ δύο τοίχους τῇ πίστει οἰκοδομήσας ἐπάνω αὐτῶν ἐπίκειται εἰς μίαν ἁρμογὴν σωτηρίας συνάγων. Ἥλιος δικαιοσύνης ἤκουσεν διὰ τὸ φωτεινὸν αὐτοῦ καὶ θερμόν –οὐκ ἔστιν γὰρ ὃς ἀποκρυβήσεται τὴν θέρμην αὐτοῦ, καὶ διὰ τὸ δωδεκάκτινον φῶς τῶν ἀποστόλων. Κόκκος σινάπεως ἤκουσεν, ἐπειδὴ σμικρύνει ἑαυτὸν καὶ συγκαταβαίνει ταῖς ἕξεσιν ἡμῶν παρὰ τὰς ἀρχὰς τῆς πίστεως, εἶθ' ὁπόταν εἰς τοὺς αὔλακας τῆς ψυχῆς ἡμῶν ἐμφωλεύσας εἰς βάθος διαχυθῇ, εἰς ὕψος οὐρανομῆκες ἐπαιρόμενος πρὸς εὐσέβειαν καὶ φρόνησιν ἀναθερμαίνεται. Σκώληξ ἤκουσεν· Ἐγὼ γάρ εἰμι σκώληξ καὶ οὐκ ἄνθρωπος, διὰ τὸ τὴν ἐξαστράπτουσαν θεότητα καθάπερ ἄγκιστρον τῷ σκώληκι τοῦ σώματος κρύψαντα αὐτὸν εἰς τόνδε τὸν βυθὸν τοῦ βίου χαλάσαντα καὶ ὥσπερ καλὸν ἁλιέα ἀνασπάσαντα πληρῶσαι τὸ γεγραμμένον· Ἄξεις δράκοντα ἐν ἀγκίστρῳ. Ἄνθρωπος ἤκουσεν, ἐπειδὴ σῶμα ἐφόρησεν οὐκ ἐξ ἡδονῆς καὶ ὕπνου συνεστώς, ἀλλ' ἐκ παρθένου καὶ πνεύματος ἁγίου γεγονώς. Ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ ἕκαστος ἡμῶν, ἀγαπητοί, ἐκδέχεται καὶ τὴν τῶν πατέρων μελίρρυτον διδασκαλίαν, ἐνταῦθα τὸ βαλάντιον ἡμῶν τῶν λόγων σφραγισώμεθα ἁγίῳ πνεύματι, ἵνα αὐτοὶ ἐλθόντες ἐκ τῆς μελισταγοῦς σοφίας τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τὰς δεξαμενὰς τῶν καρδιῶν ἡμῶν πληρώσωσιν, καὶ πολὺν τὸν καρπὸν τῆς εὐσεβείας ἕκαστος ὑμῶν βλαστήσῃ καὶ ὁ μὲν ποιήσῃ τριάκοντα, ὁ δὲ ἑξήκοντα, ὁ δὲ ἑκατὸν τὸν στέφανον τῶν ἀγγέλων, ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ τῷ κυρίῳ ἡμῶν, μεθ' οὗ τῷ πατρὶ δόξα, τιμή, κράτος ἅμα τῷ ἁγίῳ καὶ ζωοποιῷ πνεύματι, νῦν καὶ εἰς τοὺς σύμπαντας αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν.