Simeon is a new theologian teaching. Simeon the new theologian life. New word from Simeon of Galata

Troparion, tone 4 As a spectator of the Trisolar Light and a teller of the mysterious Theology, consecration Simeon, our father, ask our souls for enlightenment from above and drive away the darkness of passions from us, for, O great servant of Christ, you bestow useful reverence on everyone.

Kontakion, tone 2 As the Most Divine Theologian of God and our great prayer book to the Lord, ever, Simeon, pray to grant us forgiveness of sins and correction of life, reverence.

Life of our Venerable and God-Bearing Father Simeon the New Theologian

The Monk Simeon, the New Theologian, was born in 949 in the town of Galata in Paphlagonia (Asia Minor) from rich and noble parents Vasily and Feofania. Most of the life of the Monk Simeon coincided with one of the best periods of Byzantine history, when Emperor Vasily II reigned (976-1025).

As an eleven-year-old teenager, combining great abilities and a meek, reverent disposition, the Monk Simeon was sent to Constantinople to study in the capital. Having completed the so-called grammar courses, the young man was personally introduced to the emperor, who included him among the courtiers.

A brilliant career in the public sphere opened up before the young man, to which his uncle, who occupied an important place at court, diligently encouraged him. But the desires and thoughts of the pious young man, not seduced by the vanity of metropolitan life, were directed towards something else. Under the influence of spiritual books, the young man sought to take the path of monasticism. The Lord sent him the elderly monk of the Studite Monastery, Simeon the Reverent, as his spiritual leader.

The godly elder dissuaded him from hasty decisions, advising him to arm himself with patience while waiting for the moment when the good aspirations of the young nature will turn into a deeply realized internal need and vital necessity. Carefully observing the development of his novice, who was in the world, Elder Simeon instructed him in reading spiritual literature and helped him with soulful edifications and advice.

One of these pieces of advice became for the Monk Simeon the guiding rule of his entire life: to listen and obey conscience, which is the voice of God in a person’s soul, instills in him only that which brings him closer to God. Having embarked on the path of severe asceticism, the Monk Simeon limited himself to bread and water, and delved deeper and deeper into prayer during long night vigils. “Tears flowed from his eyes, he increased his genuflections, as if the Lord Himself were present, and prayerfully called upon the Mother of God” - thus, speaking as if about some fictitious young man, the Monk Simeon talks about his prayerful exploits.

He was honored with a blessed enlightenment, during which he felt himself surrounded by an unearthly light, “he ceased to feel both himself and everything around him.” This kind of asceticism is rarely without temptations. The Monk Simeon did not escape them either. After six years of living in Constantinople and constant communication with his spiritual father, he had to leave for his homeland, where he changed his lifestyle, succumbing to many temptations.

“I was in such a state as if I had never understood or heard the holy words of Christ,” St. Simeon later wrote. “But love and faith for the holy elder remained in my unfortunate heart.” And because of her, I think, the Humane-loving God, after so many years, had mercy on me through his prayers.”

Having perceived his deliverance from the paths of evil as a great mercy of gracious Providence, the Monk Simeon made a firm decision to enter the monastic path.

With the blessing of Elder Simeon, he became a novice of the Studite Monastery at the age of twenty-seven. Here he followed the instructions of his spiritual father so diligently that he aroused displeasure on the part of the abbot of the monastery, who expelled him from the monastery. Having moved to the neighboring small monastery in the name of Saint Mamant, called Xirokerk, the young novice accepted monasticism. Indulging in solitude, reading and contemplation of God, he observed strict fasting for weeks on end, eating only vegetables and seeds, only attending fraternal meals on Sundays.

He spent the little time allotted for sleep on the floor, laying sheepskin on top of the matting. He never uttered idle words, maintained sober self-absorption and tried not to leave his cell. Accepting the priestly rank in such favor, the Monk Simeon was granted the great Grace of God for the second time: during his ordination he felt illuminated and imbued with an unearthly spiritual light. He perceived this mercy as a sign of the special responsibility that lies on the conscience of the shepherd of God’s flock, who “must be pure in body, and even more so in soul, not stained by any sin, humble in outward disposition and contrite in heart in inward disposition.”

According to the testimony of Saint Simeon’s associates, during the offering of the Bloodless Sacrifice, his face became angel-like and emitted such a bright light that it was difficult to look at him. In 980, when the Monk Simeon was thirty-one years old, the monks of the monastery of St. Mamant chose him as their abbot. According to the testimony of Nikita Stifat, the author of the Life of St. Simeon, the New Theologian, the monastery of St. Magant was at that time “not so much a refuge and a herd of monks, but a place of residence for worldly people,” as for the monks from the small brethren, they “suffered from spiritual hunger "

In his first Catechetical Sermon “On Love,” addressed to the brethren of the monastery, the Monk Simeon called on the monks to begin a new life in perfect love for the Lord and people. Having begun to fulfill his duties as abbot with fear and reverence, the Monk Simeon made the subject of his constant concerns not only the spiritual, but also the economic life of the monastery. The Monastery of St. Mamant at that time needed serious restoration work, because most of the monastery buildings had fallen into disrepair.

In the end, the monastery was updated, the monastery church was repaired, a marble floor was laid in it, the walls were decorated with icons, and all the necessary utensils were purchased for liturgical needs. The monastery meal was also improved. Over time, the Monk Simeon managed to turn the monastery of St. Mamant into a flourishing monastery with a many times increased number of inhabitants. The name of St. Simeon became famous among the residents of Constantinople.

Many high-ranking officials turned to him for spiritual guidance. However, the innovations of the Monk Simeon, who demanded strict adherence to the strict monastic rules, turned out to be beyond the strength of some of the inhabitants of the holy monastery. It came to the point of an open speech by thirty monks who dared to file a complaint against their abbot to Patriarch Sisinius II of Constantinople (996-999). Having carefully sorted everything out, the Patriarch ordered the complainants to be punished by expulsion from the monastery and fully supported the Monk Simeon, who, however, out of his great kindness, forgave his enemies and managed to persuade the Patriarch to return the lost flock to the bosom of his native monastery. A few years later, in 1005, the Monk Simeon handed over the abbess to his disciple, the monk Arseny, and he himself settled in a lonely cell at the monastery for continuous stay with God in prayer and contemplation of God.

From that time on, a new stage began in the life of the holy ascetic. The gift of teaching, which was previously expressed in private and church teachings, was now revealed in its entirety in numerous writings that have come down to us under the general title “The Words of St. Simeon, the New Theologian.” At the same time, he began writing his wonderful “Hymns,” which were completed later, during the period of his exile. The expulsion of the Monk Simeon from the monastery of Saint Mamant, which he had revived, was the result of two years of persecution by Metropolitan Stephen of Nicomedia, although an educated man, he was an envious man, very jealous of the glory of the godly recluse. After futile attempts to discover anything reprehensible in the writings and life of the Monk Simeon, Metropolitan Stefan found fault with the custom established by the monk to celebrate the memory of his spiritual mentor Simeon the Reverent.

Considering this custom to be overly solemn and unfounded, Metropolitan Stefan, having enlisted the support of individual bishops, launched a campaign against the saint with such a fuss that the Patriarch himself had to intervene in the matter. The latter did not see anything wrong in the veneration of his teacher by the Monk Simeon, but, wanting to put an end to the turmoil, he invited him to find a place to live away from Constantinople. So the Monk Simeon found himself in a deserted area that belonged to one of his admirers, Christopher Fagure, who gave him the opportunity to live at a small church in the name of St. Marina. He also allocated the necessary funds for the founding of the monastery, in which the Monk Simeon gathered a new brotherhood, established strict rules in it, and again withdrew into prayerful solitude. Here, in the silence of the retreat, occasionally disturbed by those who came for spiritual instruction, the Monk Simeon devoted himself entirely to theological and poetic creativity.

The prayer hymns, embodied by him in poetic form, cover a wide range of theological topics, such as the Holy Eucharist and other Sacraments, monasticism and peace, the conscious mystical experience of enlightenment and deification, the mystery of salvation, the doctrine of the Most Holy Trinity and many others. The main pathos and main distinctive feature of the theological teaching of St. Simeon, the New Theologian, lies in the affirmation of the possibility of feeling and perceiving God in this life - deification, achieved through repentance and communion of the Body and Blood of Christ. “Do not say,” he writes, “that it is impossible to receive the Divine Spirit, do not say that without Him it is possible to be saved, do not say that anyone is involved in Him without knowing it, do not say that God is invisible to people, do not say that people do not see the Divine light or that this is impossible in present times! It's never impossible, friends! But it is very possible for those who wish” (Hymn 27).

With particular force, the Monk Simeon called on his brothers to follow Christ, Who is “the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). But this is impossible without creating a contrite and humble heart within yourself. Humility is “the main characteristic of a Christian,” a measure of his closeness to God, just as pride is a measure of distance from God. “Let someone take all his property,” writes Simeon, the New Theologian, “and give it to the poor, let him fast, keep vigils, sleep on bare ground, say prayers day and night, and not seek from God to acquire for himself a contrite and humble heart, such will not receive any benefit from his labors” (Word 31).

The entire life of St. Simeon, the New Theologian, showed a vivid example of acquiring a humble and contrite heart. The last thirteen years of life in exile were marked by the fulfillment of numerous predictions and healings through the prayers of the monk, who advised anointing the sick with oil from the lamp that glowed in front of the image of St. Marina. On March 12, 1022, at the age of seventy-three, the Monk Simeon reposed in the Lord. The author of his biography, Nikita Stifat, testifies that the day of the saint’s death was predicted by him in advance. Thirty years later, the holy relics of St. Simeon were found.

His memory is celebrated on March 12, the day of his repose, and also on October 12, since the day of his repose falls during the period of Great Lent.

(Paphlagonia) and received a thorough secular education in Constantinople. His father prepared him for a court career, and for some time the young man occupied a high position at the imperial court. But having reached the age of 25, he felt an attraction to monastic life, ran away from home and retired to the Studite Monastery, where he underwent obedience under the guidance of the then famous elder Simeon the Reverent.

Studite Monastery

The main feat of the saint was the incessant Jesus Prayer in its short form: “Lord, have mercy!” For greater prayerful concentration, he constantly sought solitude, even during the liturgy he stood separately from the brethren, and often remained alone at night in church; To get used to remembering death, he spent nights in the cemetery. The fruit of his zeal was a special state of admiration: during these hours the Holy Spirit in the form of a luminous cloud descended on him and covered everything around him from his eyes. Over time, he achieved constant high spiritual enlightenment, which was especially evident when he served the Liturgy.

Monastery of St. Mamant

St. Simeon put the neglected economy of the monastery in order and landscaped the temple in it.

The Monk Simeon combined kindness with severity and strict observance of the Gospel commandments. So, for example, when his favorite student Arseny killed the crows that had eaten soaked bread, the abbot forced him to string the dead birds on a rope, put this “necklace” around his neck and stand in the yard. In the monastery of St. Mamant, a certain bishop from Rome, who accidentally killed his young nephew, atone for the sin, and the Monk Simeon invariably showed kindness and attention to him.

The strict monastic discipline, which the monk constantly instilled, led to strong discontent among the monastic brethren. One day after the liturgy, particularly irritated brothers attacked him and almost killed him. When the Patriarch of Constantinople expelled them from the monastery and wanted to hand them over to the city authorities, the monk begged forgiveness for them and helped them in their lives in the world.

To calm minds and satisfy Stephen, the Patriarch and the Synod decided to remove Simeon from Constantinople. He retired to the shores of the Bosphorus and to the area belonging to his student and admirer, the patrician Christopher Fagur. Here the Reverend established the monastery of St. Marina, lived in it for 13 years and died peacefully in the city.

During his lifetime he received the gift of miracles. Numerous miracles were performed even after his death; one of them is the miraculous acquisition of his image. His life was written by his cell attendant and disciple, the Monk Nikita Stifat.

Proceedings

Simeon the New Theologian is remarkable primarily as a theologian-preacher; A distinctive feature of his theology is the application of theoretical Christian teaching to Christian life.

Very few of the Saint’s works have been published in Slavic and Russian. In the “Philokalia” the following are printed: “Active and theological chapters” (152 in number; in Russian translation published in “Christian Reading”, 1823, under the title “One hundred and fifty-two active and theological chapters”), “The Word on Faith” (Russian translation in "Christian Reading", 1821) and "A Word on Three Types of Prayer".

In 1852, 12 “Words” of Simeon the New Theologian, taken from the number 35, were published in Moscow in a Slavic translation; these 12 “Words” were translated into Russian after careful comparison with the Greek manuscript located in Moscow. Synodal Library (M., 1869).

Other works of the Monk Simeon (ninety-two “words”, “Active and theological chapters” and “The ascetic word of Elder Simeon the Reverent”) were translated from modern Greek by Bishop Theophan (“Words of St. Simeon the New Theologian”, M., 1879 and 1882; 2nd ed. ., ib., 1890-92).

The “words” of St. Simeon are distinguished by their simplicity and sincerity; he instructs, inspires, touches; his contemporaries, accustomed to artificial eloquence, found his “words” unscientific and unrhetorical.

“The Divine Hymns of St. Simeon the New Theologian” was also published (translation from Greek, Moscow, Sergiev Posad, printing house of I.I. Ivanov, 1917).

The church named Simeon New Theologian, finding in his works similarities with the works of Gregory the Theologian: both of them were distinguished by the depth of contemplation of the truths of Christian piety.

The Monk Simeon is considered the founder of that teaching about the heavenly illumination of the soul of the believer, which subsequently led to the dispute between the Palamites and Barlaamites.

Simeon's prayer before communion of the Holy Mysteries is printed in Slavic prayer books.

The Venerable Nile of Sorsky is often attested to in the writings of St. Simeon (“as Simeon the new Theologian commands”; “as St. Simeon spoke”).

Reverence

In the late 1980s, with the blessing of the venerable elders Porfirios Kavsokalivit, Paisios the Holy Mountain and Iakovos of Euboea, the first monastery was created in Kalamos, Attica, Greece in the name of St. Symeon the New Theologian.

Prayers

Troparion, tone 3

Divine illumination, Father Simeon, / having received in your soul, / you have appeared as the brightest luminary in the world, / dispelling that obscurantism / and assuring everyone to seek, even after destroying, the grace of the Spirit, / diligently pray for Him // to grant us great mercy.

Troparion, tone 1

You were not involved in external wisdom, / but you were filled with the Divine, / and the New Theologian was truly known by everyone, Simeon. / For this sake of your memory, wise father, we cry out to you: / glory to Christ who glorified you, / glory to Him who showed you wondrously, // glory to Him who heals you all.

Troparion, tone 4

As a spectator of the Trisolar Light / and a teller of the mysterious Theology, / blessed Simeon, our Father, / ask for enlightenment for our souls from above / and drive away the darkness of passions from us, / for, as a great servant of Christ, // you give useful things to everyone, reverend.

Kontakion, tone 3

Enlightened by the Trisolar Light, O God-Wise One, / Thou art the Theologian of the Divine Trinity. / Having been enriched from above with the wisdom of words, / you have exuded Divine streams of God-wisdom, / drinking from them, we cry: // Rejoice, blessed Simeon, taught by God.

In Kontakion, voice 2(Similar to: Thy blood)

As the Most Divine Theologian of God / and our great prayer book to the Lord, / everlastingly, Simeon, pray to grant us forgiveness of sins // and correction of life, reverend.

Literature

• Bishop Theophan, “The Life of the Teacher S. New Theologian” (“Soulful Reading”, 1877, February);
• A. Lebedev, “Byzantine education in general, theological science and literature in particular” (“Readings in the Society of Lovers of Spiritual Enlightenment”, 1877, part II);
• his, “On trends in religious and mental life, essays from the history of the Eastern Church of the 9th, 10th and 11th centuries.” (ib., 1878, part I).

Used materials

• Portal calendar page Pravoslavie.Ru:
• Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron.
• Page "Library of the Holy Fathers and Doctors of the Church" of the Orthodox Encyclopedia ABC of faith:

Word X

About communion with the Holy Spirit, about holiness and complete dispassion. And that he who loves human glory will never succeed in virtues, no matter how hard he tries

Preface to the translation

None of those who are even slightly familiar with the works of St. Simeon the New Theologian can remain indifferent to them. Etc. Simeon is a person and the place he occupies in the Patristic tradition is defined and irrevocable. But what kind of place is this? There were disputes about this even during the life of the monk, and they are still going on. The very name “New Theologian,” invented by opponents as a mockery, only over time turned into an honorary title. Persecution from monks, alienation of priests, reprimands from the church hierarchy - all this accompanied St. Simeon throughout his life. And yet, studies of the texts show that his theology is a continuation of the tradition of the Holy Fathers of the Church, such as St. Gregory the Theologian, St. Maximus the Confessor and others, or, more precisely, this is one and the same legend. What then is the reason for the misunderstanding and, moreover, the persecution of St. Simeon by his contemporaries? Did you write unclearly? But all the Holy Fathers wrote about Divine light, tears, and repentance, and Simeon was not the first. It must be that the reason for this incomprehensibility or incomprehensibility lies not in the works of the New Theologian, but in the consciousness of his contemporaries. “I am talking about those and calling them heretics who say that there is no one in our times and among us who can keep the Gospel commandments and become like the Holy Fathers... So those who say that this is impossible do not have any particular heresy, but by all<…>He who says this refutes all the Divine Scriptures<…>And why, tell me, is it impossible? And by what means<…>did the saints shine on earth and become luminaries in the world? If it were impossible, they would never be able to do it. For they were people, just like us. They did not possess anything more than we did, except the will for good, diligence and patience and love for God. So, acquire this too, and your now stony soul will become a source of tears for you. If you don’t want to endure sorrow and embarrassment, then at least don’t say that it’s impossible.” But the disagreement of his opponents with Simeon was not a passive denial of his spiritual life. “I am surprised at the majority of people who, before being born of God and becoming His children, do not tremble to theologize and talk about God. That is why, when I hear some of them philosophizing and impurely theological about divine and incomprehensible things<…>without the admonishing Spirit, my spirit trembles and I seem to become beside myself, thinking and considering the inaccessibility of the Divine to everyone, and how, not knowing what is under our feet and in ourselves, we willingly philosophize, out of the absence of the fear of God and out of audacity , about things that are inaccessible to us. And we do this, being deserted from the Spirit, who enlightens us in this and develops knowledge, and by speaking about God we sin.” So, the main sign not only of theology, but also of a person’s belonging to that which is the source of theology and its custodian, namely God and the Church, can be called the presence of the Holy Spirit in a person. A person is not rooted in himself, his membership in the Church does not belong to him unconditionally, only by his external way of life (although this cannot be canceled either). Only in our correlation with God do we find and recognize our true place in the world, in being, and this correlation can never be forgotten, the presence of the Spirit should not be replaced by something else or appropriated to ourselves, otherwise the guideline is lost and errors appear. On what basis can a person belong to himself? Recognize yourself as self-sufficient and you no longer know who you are or where your place is. Simeon's opponents also thought that they were in the right place, they defended the Church from his teachings and... were wrong. God the Holy Spirit Himself calls His followers to Himself, and they cannot help but know about it: “What is this in which they dress? God. So, the one who is dressed by God will not recognize mentally and will not see what he is wearing? A naked person feels that he has been clothed and sees clothes, but a naked soul, having clothed himself with God, does not recognize this? And this recognition is not constant, not natural, otherwise it is appropriation and falling away from God, but requires efforts from us in order to survive, and therefore cannot be completed or completed, and even determined by man, for in this communication with God there is the essence and the meaning of our life, every definition and completion of which is in the will of the One who created us.

Just as water, constantly flowing from a source, stagnates a little, spoils and turns into what is called a swamp, and not a source, so one who purifies himself by doing the commandments and is cleansed and sanctified by God, if he deviates a little from doing, then, by analogy, he will also deviate from holiness. He who is drawn into the knowledge of sin alone is completely deprived of purity, just as a vessel of water is completely defiled by a little dirt. I am not talking about sin committed only through the body, but also through internal passions, invisibly committed within us. And do not doubt me, brothers, when I say; you will learn that if we learn every virtue and perform miracles, even if we do not ignore a single commandment, but we desire only glory from people and seek it in some way of life and hasten to have it, then we will be deprived of the reward for all the rest. For receiving glory from men and not preferring the glory of God (John 5:44; 12:43), we are condemned as idolaters, serving the creature instead of the Creator (Rom. 1:25). And he who accepts the given earthly glory with pleasure and joy, and enjoys it, and rejoices in his heart, will be condemned as a fornicator. After all, such a person is like a man who has chosen to be a virgin and rejects communication with wives and does not run to them and does not want to stay with them, but one certain wife who comes to him, immediately accepting with pleasure and being filled with the pleasure of copulation. It happens that the same thing happens with any other desire and with any other passion. Anyone who voluntarily gives himself to envy, or love of money, or jealousy, or enmity, or any other evil, will not receive the crown of righteousness (2 Tim. 4:8). For God, being just, does not tolerate the unjust to have partners with Himself and, being pure, is not defiled by the unclean and, being the beginning of dispassion, is not conformed to the passionate and, being holy, does not enter into the vicious soul. The wicked is the one who has taken the grain of the wicked seed into his heart and bears the fruit of thorns and thistles of sin to the devil, burning with eternal fire (Heb. 6:8), which is envy, hatred, remembrance, jealousy, disobedience, conceit, vanity (Phil. 2:3 ), arrogance, cunning, curiosity, slander, and if he does anything, he does it with pleasure through the despicable passion of the body and defiles his inner man, according to the word of the Lord (Rom. 7:22, Eph. 3:16).

But may it not happen, brothers, that we will ever bring such tares, having received in laziness the seed of vice into our hearts. May we bear 30-, 60-, 100-fold fruits to Christ, cultivated in us by the Spirit, which are love, joy, peace, truth, kindness, long-suffering, faith, meekness, self-control; to feed on the bread of knowledge, and to grow in virtues, and to reach human perfection, the measure of the full stature of Christ (Eph. 4:13), to whom belongs all glory forever. Amen.

Simeon the New Theologian did not seem to say anything new, did not make original and loud statements, but with his speech, obviously instructing his contemporaries, he showed once again that no one has canceled the commandment of God, that it does not cease to be relevant, but on the contrary - is always necessary not only for man’s existence on earth, but also for his own salvation and the acquisition of the Kingdom of God. And just like in the 4th century St. Ephraim the Syrian says that “Blessed is the man in whom there is the love of God, because he carries God within himself. In whom love, together with God, is above all, he never disdains anyone, small and great, glorious and inglorious, poor and rich: on the contrary, he himself is rabble for everyone; “He covers everything, he endures everything,” he does not puff himself up before anyone, does not become arrogant, does not slander anyone and turns away his ears from those who slander, he does not indulge in flattery, does not stumble and does not trip up his brother’s feet, does not compete, does not envy.” . So St. Basil the Great, continuing the theme of love, utters the same thought that sounds ten centuries later from Simeon the New Theologian: “Love has two remarkable means: to grieve and suffer when a loved one suffers harm, and also to rejoice and work for the benefit beloved. Therefore, blessed is he who weeps for someone who sins, who through this is exposed to terrible danger; and rejoices over those who do well.” St. Simeon will repeat it. He sets as an example to follow people who cried for their sinning brothers, took on their sins, asking God for forgiveness for them, and did not even want to be saved themselves, without them, being connected with them by the true gospel love that Christ commanded and really fulfilled His words with their lives. It is by this that they already on earth became “participants of the Holy Spirit”, “heirs of the Kingdom of Heaven”, “joint heirs of Christ”.

Many, however, may hastily say: “Christ is God, it is easy for Him to love,” but we are given examples of the lives of people who are no different from us, not just as an example to follow, because the only example really remains Christ, but to strengthen our strength Saints who do not desire any earthly glory become open to the world, but are looking only for the path to salvation, the path to Christ. And I want to believe that what we know will not become just a part of history, but a real guide to life.

St. Basil the Great “Spiritual Instructions”, M., 1998.

Brothers and fathers, if someone pretends to be virtuous to the deception and destruction of many, he is in reality unhappy, condemned and vile by both God and people; but it is obvious that the one who portrays any passion, being dispassionate, following the example of the ancient fathers, for the sake of saving many, is happy and worthy of praise. For like the devil in the guise of a serpent and advisor, someone seems to be good and helpful, but in truth, since he (the serpent) is deadly and deprives a person of all the fruits in paradise, he turned out to be a fighter against God and a murderer; in the same way, the one who, under the guise of vice and apparently uttering evil words, so that, having discovered what the devil is doing with those who pretend to be virtuous, turns those who commit evil to repentance and salvation and recognition of their sin, he clearly becomes an imitator and co-worker of God , the savior of people. But this is the work only of those whose attitude towards the perception of this air and the world and its affairs has become indifferent, whose mind does not feel [passion] for the visible, but who has humbly humbled the body, [the work of] equal to the Angels, I say, completely united with God , Having the whole Christ in themselves entirely - by deed, experience, feeling, knowledge and contemplation of God.

It is also shameful to eavesdrop or secretly spy on what one’s neighbor is doing, but [if] it is in order to blaspheme, or consider him bad, or scold (blaspheme), mock on occasion at what he saw and heard; if this is in order to sympathetically and wisely, with thoughts of correcting one’s neighbor and praying for him with tears from the heart, then such a thing is not (is) bad. I saw a man who has many shortcomings and invents many ways so that nothing done or said by those who were with him would be hidden from him, did this not in order to harm them, never in life, but so that [in one] word, [ another] with gifts, the third by some other trick to instruct in the opposite case and reasoning. For I also saw such [a person]: now crying because of one thing, now sighing for another, or striking himself in the face and chest for someone, taking on the mask of a sinner in word and deed, without a doubt (he himself was) how the one who commits evil condemned himself, and confessed to God, and fell at his feet, and wept bitterly. And I saw another rejoicing with those [who] achieved success so that it seemed that he himself, more than they, was going to receive a reward for his virtues and labors. For those who fall in word and deed, and those who remain in evil, he grieved and grieved so much that it seems that only he in truth must repay for everyone and will be punished.

And I saw a man who so strived and desired the salvation of his brothers that often with hot tears from the bottom of his heart he asked the man-loving God either to help (save them), or to condemn him along with them, imitating God and Moses, not wanting salvation only for himself . For they were so bound together by holy love in the Holy Spirit that they chose not to enter the Kingdom of Heaven alone and to be placed separately from them. O holy bonds, O great power, O soul, concerned about heavenly things, or better yet, about God, carried away by God, in love for God and for one’s neighbor.

So, whoever has not yet achieved this love and has not discovered even a trace of it in his own soul, has not felt its full presence, [he] still on earth, in the earthly and even underground, found himself hidden, like a mole, obviously blind, and himself, like him, he listens only by ear to what is said on earth.

O misfortune, that having been born of God and having received immortality from Him and having become partakers of the Heavenly calling and chosen and joint heirs of Christ, we have not yet felt such great benefits received by us, but insensitively, so to speak, like iron put into fire, or like an insensitive skin, unconsciously dipped in crimson paint, so we lie, being among such great blessings of God; recognizing that we have no awareness [of these benefits] within ourselves. And when we exalt ourselves [in pride], as having already been saved and included in the list of saints, pretending and embellishing and playing holiness, as if living miserably on an orchestra or stage, we become like actors and adulteresses, who, deprived of natural beauty, foolishly use foreign rubbish and colors. hoping to embellish themselves. But the characteristics of saints who are born again are completely different.

You need to know that just as a baby, when it came out of its mother’s womb, intangibly feels this air and is directly directed towards crying and screaming automatically, so the one born again, coming out of this world, as if from a dark womb, entered into the spiritual, imperishable light and is completely leaning a little into this world, he is immediately filled with inexpressible beauty and sheds tears (of joy) without pain, naturally understanding where he was saved from and what kind of light he was awarded: for this is the beginning of him being numbered among the Christians.

Those who have not yet achieved this beauty in knowledge and contemplation of God have not yet found it through much perseverance, suffering, and shedding tears, so that through these deeds, having been cleansed of sin, they find it and become completely one with it [become], and enter into an alliance with her, how, tell me [frankly], how can they even be called Christians?! Because they are not what they should be.

Because if that which is born of the flesh is the flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is the spirit, it is born bodily and has become a man, but in order to become spiritual, one must think [about it], believe and strive, otherwise how will one actually become a spiritual person and be consider yourself a spiritual person? Unless secretly, like someone who has put on a dirty cloak, he will imprison himself, but he will be thrown out with his hands and feet tied, not as a son of light, but of flesh and blood, and will be sent into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For he who received the opportunity to become the son of God and the heir of the Kingdom of Heaven and eternal blessings, who understood in various ways through what deeds and commandments one must ascend to this dignity and glory, and neglected all this, preferring earthly and perishable things, and choosing the life of pigs, and considering that temporary glory is better than eternal glory - what is unjust about being separated from all the faithful and condemned along with all the infidels and the devil?

Therefore, I urge all of you, brothers and fathers, hurry up, while there is time and we live, fight to become sons of God, to become children of light - since this is what gives us birth from above - hate the flesh and the suffering it brings, hate all evil desires and self-interest, down to the most insignificant form and deed. We can do this if we think about the greatness of the glory, the joy and the blessings that we are about to receive. After all, what, tell me, is more important in heaven and on earth than to become the son of God and His heir and joint heir with Christ? Absolutely nothing! But because we prefer earthly goods and what is in our hands (substantial, material), and do not seek the goods that are in heaven, and are not attached by desire to them, we clearly show by visible evidence that at first we are overcome by the disease of unbelief , as it is written: “How can you believe the glory that you receive from people, but do not seek the glory of the One God?” - after that, having become slaves of passions, we are nailed to the earth and everything that is on it (earthly things), and we completely refuse to desire the heavenly and Divine, but in the madness of the soul we push away the Divine commandments and are deprived of His adoption. Because what could be more foolish than to disobey God and not rush to achieve His adoption? Because he who believes that God exists imagines something great about Him. After all, He knows that He is the only Master and Creator and the Lord Himself of everything, that He is immortal, eternal, incomprehensible, invisible, incorruptible, and His Kingdom will have no end. How can he who truly knows this about God not desire Him? How will one not be in a hurry to lay down one's soul in death for His love in order to be worthy - I do not say "to become His son and heir" - but in order to become one of His faithful servants standing next to Him? If everyone who immaculately keeps all the commandments of God is a child of God and becomes a son of God, born again and truly faithful and a Christian, he is recognized by everyone. We despise the commandments of God and reject His laws, according to which He, coming with glory and with terrible power, will immediately punish, and we show ourselves in faith by our unfaithful deeds, but in unbelief that we are faithful only in words. For faith alone will not help us at all, because it is dead, and the dead will not become heirs of life if they do not first seek it by deed and by fulfilling the commandments. By these deeds, a certain fruit is cultivated within us, giving a great harvest: love, mercy, compassion for others, meekness, humility, patience, chastity, purity of heart - through which we will be awarded the vision of God, and in which the presence of the Holy Spirit and shine, and which (purity of heart) gives birth to us from above, and makes [us] sons of God, and lights the lamp, and shows us as children of light, and frees souls from darkness, and, of course, makes us partakers of eternal life.

So, let us not neglect doing the commandments of the Lord, relying on some deeds and virtues alone - I’m talking about fasting, vigil, lying on the ground and various other sufferings - as if we had the opportunity to be saved through those separately from this [ fulfillment of the commandments]. It's impossible, yes, it's impossible. Let the five foolish virgins and those who performed many signs and wonders in the name of Christ convince you, [who], not having in themselves the love and grace of the Holy Spirit, heard from the Lord: “Get away from Me, you workers of lawlessness! For I don’t know you, where you come from!” And not only these, but also many others with them, who were baptized by the holy apostles and the saints who followed the apostles, were not awarded the grace of the Holy Spirit, nor the primacy because of their depravity, and did not accept the lot of a worthy life by which they were chosen, and did not prove themselves to be children of God, but remained, being flesh and blood, not believing that in any way the Holy Spirit could exist, or not seeking or expecting to receive [His grace]. Such people - not masters of the desires of the flesh and spiritual passions - will never have strength, will never be able to demonstrate strength in virtues, for the Lord says: “You cannot do anything apart from Me.” But I urge you, fathers and brothers, to hasten as best we can in order to become heirs of the Holy Spirit and become worthy of His gifts, in order to receive both present and future blessings, through the grace and love for mankind of our Lord Jesus Christ, to Him be glory forever centuries. Amen.

Translation by E.A. Kozlova

Magazine "Nachalo" No. 12, 2002

Works and Hymns

THE LIFE OF REVEREND SIMEON NOVAGO THEOLOGIST

The Monk Simeon was born in the Paphlogonian village of Galata from noble and wealthy parents. His father's name is Vasily, and his mother's name is Feofania. From childhood he showed both great abilities and a meek and reverent disposition, with a love of solitude. When he grew up, his parents sent him to Constantinople to his relatives, not the least at court. There he was apprenticed and soon completed the so-called grammar courses. It was necessary to move on to philosophical ones; but he refused them, fearing to be carried away into anything indecent due to the influence of the partnership. The uncle with whom he lived did not force him, but hastened to introduce him to the career path, which in itself is a rather strict science for those who are attentive. He introduced him to the kings of the self-brothers Vasily and Constantine, the porphyry-born, and they included him in the rank of courtiers.

But the Monk Simeon cared little about the fact that he became one of the royal synclite. His desires were directed toward something else, and his heart lay elsewhere. While still studying, he became acquainted with Elder Simeon, who was called the reverent one, visited him often and used his advice in everything. It was all the more free, and at the same time more necessary, for him to do this now. His sincere desire was to quickly devote himself to a world-denying life; but the elder persuaded him to have patience, waiting for this good intention of his to mature and take deeper root, because he was still very young. He did not leave him with advice and guidance, gradually preparing him for monasticism and among worldly vanity.

The Monk Simeon himself did not like to indulge himself, and during the usual labors of self-mortification, he devoted all his free time to reading and prayer. The elder supplied him with books, telling him what he should especially pay attention to in them. One day, handing him a book of the writings of Mark the ascetic, the elder pointed out to him the different sayings in them, advising him to think about them more carefully and guide his behavior according to them. Among them was the following: if you always want to have soul-saving guidance, listen to your conscience and urgently carry out what it will inspire you. This is the saying of the teacher. Simeon took it to his heart as if it were coming from the mouth of God himself, and decided to strictly listen and obey his conscience, believing that, being the voice of God in the heart, it always inspires one soul-saving thing. From then on, he devoted himself entirely to prayer and teaching in the Divine Scriptures, staying awake until midnight and eating only bread and water, and taking only as much of it as was necessary to maintain life. So he went deeper and deeper into himself and into the realm of God. At this time he was granted that grace-filled enlightenment, which he himself describes in his word on faith, speaking as if about another certain young man. Here the grace of God allowed him to taste more fully the sweetness of life according to God and thereby suppressed the taste for everything earthly.

After this, it was natural for him to feel a strong impulse to leave the world. But the elder did not deem it good to satisfy this impulse immediately, and convinced him to endure more and more.

So six years passed. It happened that he needed to leave for his homeland, and he came to the elder to receive the blessing. Although the elder told him that now was the time to enter monasticism, he did not keep him from visiting his homeland. The Monk Simeon gave his word that as soon as he returned, he would leave the world. On the way, he took the Ladder of St. for guidance. John Climacus. Arriving at his homeland, he was not carried away by the affairs of everyday life, but continued the same strict and solitary life, for which the domestic order gave great scope. There was a church nearby, and next to the cell’s church and not far from it there was a cemetery. In this cell he secluded himself - he prayed, read and devoted himself to the thought of God.

At one time he read in the Holy Ladder: insensibility is the mortification of the soul and the death of the mind before bodily death, and he became jealous to forever banish this disease of insensibility from his soul. For this purpose, he went out to the cemetery at night and prayed earnestly there, thinking together about death and the future judgment, as well as about the fact that the dead on whose tombs he prayed were now dead, who were alive like him. To this he added a stricter fast and a longer and more vigorous vigil. Thus, he kindled within himself the spirit of life according to God, and its burning kept him constantly in a state of contrite tenderness that did not allow insensibility. If it happened that cooling was approaching, he hurried to the cemetery, cried and sobbed, beating his chest, and did not get up from his place until the usual tender contrition returned. The fruit of this course of action was that the image of death and mortality was so deeply imprinted in his consciousness that he looked at himself and others no differently than at the dead. Because of this, no beauty captivated him, and ordinary carnal movements froze at their very appearance, being burned by the fire of contrition. Crying became food for him.

The time has finally come to return to Constantinople. His father asked him to stay at home while he saw him off to the next world; but seeing where his son’s fiery desire was heading, he said goodbye to him with love and willing blessing.

The time of returning to Constantinople was for the Monk Simeon the time of renunciation of the world and entry into the monastery. The elder received him with fatherly embraces and introduced him to the abbot of his Studian monastery, Peter; but he gave it back into the hands of the elder, that great reverent Simeon. Having accepted the young monk as God’s pledge, the elder led him into one small cell, more like a tomb, and there he outlined for him the rules of the cramped and regrettable monastic life. He told him: look, my son, if you want to be saved, go to church without hesitation, and stand there with reverent prayer, without turning here and there and without starting conversations with anyone; do not go from cell to cell; do not be bold, keeping your mind from wandering, paying attention to yourself and thinking about your sinfulness, death and judgment. - In his severity, the elder observed, however, a prudent measure, taking care that his pet did not have an addiction even to strict feats. Why sometimes he assigned him obediences that were difficult and humiliating, and sometimes easy and honest; sometimes he intensified his fasting and vigil, and sometimes he forced him to eat his fill and sleep enough, in every possible way accustoming him to renounce his will and his own orders.

The Monk Simeon sincerely loved his elder, honored him as a wise father, and did not deviate even a hair's breadth from his will. He was so in awe of him that he kissed the place where the elder prayed, and he humbled himself so deeply before him that he did not consider himself worthy to approach and touch his clothes.

The page layout of this e-book corresponds to the original.

Venerable Simeon the New Theologian

CREATIONS

t. Ι.

WORDS

WORD ONE. 1. What was Adam’s crime? 2. How, because of his crime, all people became corruptible and mortal? 3. How did the merciful and humane God, through the economy of the incarnation, deliver the human race from corruption and death? 4. And what is the mystery of the cross and the three-day burial of the Lord God and our Savior Jesus Christ? 21

WORD TWO. 1. That human nature, through the incarnation of the Son and God the Word, comes again into goodness, that is, into that good and divine state in which it was before Adam’s crime. 2. Also about natural, written and spiritual law. 3. More about how someone can come to prosperity. 4. And by doing what deeds we can enter the kingdom of heaven. 27

WORD THREE. 1. That we must test ourselves to see whether we have the beatitudes of Christ, because they (the virtues indicated by them) are a sign of the seal (of Christ). 32

WORD FOUR. 1. That the death of the soul is the removal of the Holy Spirit from it, and the sting of this death is sin; and that death and corruption of the body is likened to death and corruption of the soul. 2. And about what are the signs of the deadness and aliveness of the soul. 3. About how the removal of corruption and death occurs, and about the fact that death is now not destroyed, but trampled upon and made insignificant. 4. About how after death the bodies of deceased saints are glorified, also about the resurrection and the righteous judgment of God. 44

WORD FIFTH. 1. What is autocracy that God gave to man in the beginning? 2. And after the fall, what remained in man from this autocracy? 57

WORD SIX. 1. What is sickness in the body is sin in the soul. 2. Just as we have a bodily sense, it is necessary for the soul to have a spiritual sense and feel both its illness and health. 3. He who does not have a sense of spirituality and does not feel whether his soul is sick or healthy is still not a Christian, although he is called a Christian, for the direct fruit of the Christian faith is the health of the soul. 63

WORD SEVEN. 1. God, out of His excessive love for people, subjected them to various hardships in this life. 2. Poverty is a blessing from a Holy God. 3. He who blasphemes poverty denies Christianity and does not want to be a Christian. 4. The necessity will insist that Christians have sorrows and troubles.

WORD EIGHT. 1. To hold in mind what is read in the Divine Scripture is an action of the power of God. 2. About prayer and reading. 3. How should a Christian pray? 69

WORD NINE. 1. The greatest sin is to pray without the fear of God, without reverence and attention. Those who allow it do not know God, as they should. 2. In order to know God, divine light is required. 3. Every person sins in mind, word and deed. To protect yourself from sins, you must first heal your mind. 74

WORD TENTH. 1. God did not create man weak in the beginning, so that he would sin through weakness, as he sins now. 2. One is the sin of Adam, and another is the other sins that we sin today. 3. What has been given to us by Christ, and what is sin? 4. For this reason God became man, that He might abolish the works of the devil. 81

WORD ELEVEN. 1. The holy father writes this word to one lay disciple and teaches how to honor the holy spiritual fathers. 2. What should one do to find a real spiritual father? 3. And having found it, how should one treat it? 92

WORD TWELFTH. 1. He who repents of his sins will not receive any benefit if he does not seek to receive from Christ the Lord and the healing of his weakness, for which he sins. 2. Whatever a person does in real life, he does it in vain if it does not contribute to his mental health. 3. How does sin happen according to our will and without our will? 121

WORD THIRTEEN. 1. There is one medicine that heals the soul, and not many of them. 2. People sin in four ways. 3. The salvation of all is in the one will of God; man has nothing in himself by which he himself could be saved. 126

WORD FOURTEEN. 1. What does God require of a Christian? 2. What harm has a person suffered and is suffering from the devil, but does not know it? 3. All people are sick in soul and do not understand it. 4. They need to know their ailments in order to seek a doctor. 5. The crafty devil sets his temptations as bait before people. 6. For what reason do not all Christians excel in virtue? 133

WORD FIFTEEN. 1. There are seven classes of persons for whom the prayer of the Church for their salvation is required. 2. Those who pray to God, but at the same time do not know what they are asking for, are not heard. 3. Those who do not pray in the spirit work in vain. 141

WORD SIXTEEN. 1. Who is a true Christian? 2. A Christian who loves fame, or pleasure, or money is not a true Christian. 3. Christians need to endure sensitive hardships and struggles in order to free themselves from these passions. 4. Every good deed must be done for the purpose of receiving Christ’s grace and holiness. 5. Praying with attention is a gift of God. 6. Sinners are enemies of God from whom He turns away. 149

WORD SEVENTEEN. 1. Whatever good a person does, he himself benefits from it. 2. How do we know if God has accepted our fasting, prayers and almsgiving? 3. How should we sing and pray? 4. Sanctification and freedom are given to the soul through faith. 5. The soul of psalmody should be humility. 6. How is the grace of God extinguished? 158

WORD EIGHTEEN. 1. Faith is used in seven meanings. 2. Through faith a person is made worthy of the grace of God. 3. It is impossible to please God without faith. 167

WORD NINETEENTH. 1. The soul is purified through faith and fulfillment of the commandments of Christ. 2. She is clothed from above with the descending power of the Holy Spirit and is made worthy to see God. 3. Those who wish to receive good from God must joyfully endure all sorrow, suffering and temptation that encounters them. 4. Everyone should consider himself whether he is worthy to enter the kingdom of heaven. 173

WORD TWENTY. 1. Who are those who truly love God, from what is love for God born and how is it revealed? 2. What are the acts of love for our neighbors according to God? 3. Love is the head of the law. 181

WORD TWENTY-ONE. 1. About alms: who satisfies God when He is hungry, and gives water when He is thirsty, and how can this kind of thing be done? 2. The one who has mercy only on the poor, and does not have mercy on himself, does not receive real benefit, leaving himself in negligence, naked from every good deed and from the grace of God. 185

WORD TWENTY-SECOND. 1. First we must receive the grace of Christ, and then we can live life according to God. 2. How are they worthy of this grace? 3. Who is in sin and who is in grace? 4. Every sin is from the devil, but good is from Christ. 5. What is the head of virtues and what are their feet? 199

WORD TWENTY-THREE. 1. People are enslaved to three passions: the love of money, the love of fame and the love of voluptuousness. 208

WORD TWENTY-FOUR. 1. God did not create anyone to be the slave of another person, much less demons. 2. About wordless anger and lust, and why a person is exposed to them. 3. Just as bodily vision requires healthy eyes, adequate distance, clean air and the light of the sun, so mental vision requires all this mentally. 217

WORD TWENTY-FIVE. 1. About a passionate, unfaithful and crafty, or evil mood. 2. What is the union of God with the sons of light, and how does it happen? 232

WORD TWENTY-SIX. 1. About repentance and against those who misinterpret the following words of the divine Paul: those whom you foretell, those you also prescribe, and so on (Rom. 8, 29 et seq.). 241

WORD TWENTY-SEVEN. 1. Soulful instructions for every Christian. 245

WORD TWENTY-EIGHT. 1. Every sin is wickedness, and every sinner is an ungodly person. 2. Christ died to heal people from their sins. 3. To be called only Christians, this comes to us from our ancestors and from the Christian race. 249

WORD TWENTY-NINE. 1. He who seeks from God, but does not know what he is seeking, seeks in vain. 2. How to pray for the kingdom of God? 3. A soul that has been worthy of the kingdom must feel this with feeling and show it in action. 4. Who is the evil one, and how can one get rid of his slavery? 5. How is the resurrection of the soul accomplished? 259

WORD THIRTY. 1. How many types of knowledge about God are there and what are they? 2. We should know that there is a God, but what He is should not be inquired into. 3. To be a Christian, you must believe and be baptized. 4. Who is called and is a Christian, and who is called, but is not a Christian? 5. He who does not do the will of Christ the Savior is not a Christian. 6. Unrighteous Christians are worse than Jews. 268

WORD THIRTY-ONE. 1. There are two most important matters, of which in one there is destruction, in the other there is salvation. 2. Pride grows with a person. 3. Everyone needs to realize that he is nothing. 4. The main characteristic of a Christian is humility. 5. There are two sacrifices acceptable to God, without which there is no salvation. 6. What is a sign that someone is approaching God? 274

WORD THIRTY-SECOND. 1. Sent to a certain Christian brother - about repentance, which shows what needs to be done by someone who, after falling into sin and acquiring an evil habit, repented and began correction. 279

WORD THIRTY-THREE. 1. To those who partake of the Divine Mysteries. - And who receives communion unworthily. 285

WORD THIRTY-FOUR. 1. About the words of the Apostle Paul: redeeming time, for the days are evil(Eph. 5:16). 2. How does anyone rationally redeem the time of his present life? 293

WORD THIRTY-FIVE. 1. About words: the first man from the earth, ringed; second man Lord from heaven(1 Cor. 15:47). 2. How do we put off the earthy man and put on Christ, and become His relatives and brothers? 301

WORD THIRTY-SIX. 1. On the day of judgment, God will judge as sinners those who do not seek to receive the grace of God. 2. The power of sin is incomprehensible. 3. Christ uses the members of Christians as instruments. 307

WORD THIRTY-SEVEN. 1. Man lost the truth after he was expelled from paradise. 2. What is the sin of the devil, and what is the sin of Adam? 3. Man is sinful from his very conception. 4. And is reborn by the Holy Spirit in holy Baptism. 5. What did the kings and prophets want before the coming of Christ? 6. The spiritual father must first announce the confession and teach the sacrament of faith, and then impose penance. 7. Every Christian needs to accept the divine change. 316

WORD THIRTY-EIGHT. 1. Each of us must know that he is Adam in order to be Christ. 2. The sacrament of the incarnation of the Son and the Word of God has the goal of re-creating those who believe in Him and making them incorruptible and immortal. 3. The definitions of God become the law of nature. 4. What definitions of God are again canceled by Him and how? 322

WORD THIRTY-NINE. 1. How do we understand: the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom? 2. What are the signs and deeds of faithful and God-fearing people? 3. What are the signs and deeds of people who are unfaithful and do not fear God? 4. Who is the dead man who does not live according to God? 5. Just as we have existence from God, so we can only receive well-being from Him. 328

THE WORD FORTY. 1. Temperance is one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit. Those who believe in Christ should know that they receive from Him the gifts of the Holy Spirit, so that those who do not know that they receive gifts from Christ have believed in vain. 333

WORD FORTY-ONE. 1. About holidays, and how should they be celebrated? 2. Against those who boast about festivities. 3. What does it mean that what happens during them? 4. To those who partake of the Most Pure Mysteries worthily and unworthily. 5. How does it happen that someone is united with God through Holy Communion, but another is not united? 6. What difference do those who partake worthily have from those who partake unworthily? 343

WORD FORTY-SECOND. 1. What is the mystery of the Resurrection of Christ? How does the Resurrection of Christ happen in us, and how does the resurrection of the soul happen with this? - Said on Tuesday of the second week of Easter. 348

WORD FORTY-THREE. 1. About changes in soul and body that occur from the elements, food and demons. 355

WORD FORTY-FOUR. 1. The devil fights against people with five wiles. 2. Every good deed that a person does must be done either in order to appease God or in order to thank Him. 3. He who seeks to be saved must strive. 4. In which people the King of all things and God reigns and in which does not reign. 367

WORD FORTY-FIVE. 1. About the creation of the world and the creation of Adam. 2. About the crime of the commandment and expulsion from paradise. 3. About the incarnate economy of the Lord, and how He became incarnate for our sake. 4. How can all creation be renewed again? 5. What is this bright state that all creation can again perceive? 6. How is it that the saints are united with Christ and our God and become one with Him? 7. What kind of upper world is this, and how will it be filled, and when will the end come? 8. Until everyone who is destined to be born until the very last day is born, the hitherto upper world will not be filled. 9. To the words of the Gospel: “Make the kingdom of heaven like unto a man king, who married his son” (Matthew 22:2ff). 10. The saints after the resurrection will know each other. 419

WORD FORTY-SIX. 1. Through rebirth in divine Baptism, the souls of believers are again quickened and, having received the Holy Spirit as the soul of the soul, they bear the fruits of the Spirit of life. Those who bear fruit of evil are condemned along with the unbaptized. 424

WORD FORTY-SEVEN. 1. One should not tell anyone that in modern times it is impossible for anyone who wants to rise to the heights of virtue and imitate the ancient saints. 433

WORD FORTY-EIGHT. 1. Let no one dare to think that it is possible to be saved by faith alone, without doing good works. 442

WORD FORTY-NINE. 1. About spiritual knowledge, and that the treasure of the Spirit is hidden in the letter of Divine Scripture, and obviously not for everyone, but only for those who have acquired the grace of the Holy Spirit into their souls. 449

WORD FIFTY. 1. One should not be careless in keeping God’s commandments, but one should strive to keep them all. 2. Temptations must be endured generously. 461

WORD FIFTY-ONE. 1. A person must first receive strength from Christ through holy Baptism and then take up the fulfillment of the commandments, for holy Baptism makes those baptized either completely motionless or difficult to move to evil, as does the second baptism of repentance. Also what priests should be like.

WORD FIFTY-SECOND. 1. What are these unspeakable verbs that the Apostle Paul heard? 2. What are the blessings that the eye has not seen, the ear has not heard, and the heart has not sighed? 3. What is the kingdom of God, and how does it effectively appear in us? 467