1. You have heard the words of the Apostle, in which he addresses the
Thessalonians, prescribing rules of conduct for every kind of person. His
teaching, to be sure, was directed towards particular audiences; but the
benefit to be derived therefrom is relevant to every generation of mankind.
Rejoice evermore, he says; Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks (I
Thessalonians 5:16-18). Now, we shall explain a little later on, as far as we
are able, what it means to rejoice, what benefit we receive from it, and how it
is possible to achieve unceasing prayer and give thanks to God in all things.
However, it is necessary to
anticipate the objections that we encounter from our adversaries, who criticize
the Apostles injunctions as unattainable. For what is the virtue, they say, in
passing one’s life in gladness of soul, in joy and good cheer night and day?
And how is it possible to achieve this, when we are beset by countless
unexpected evils, which create unavoidable dejection in the soul, on account of
which it is no more feasible for us to rejoice and be of good cheer than for
one who is being roasted on a gridiron not to feel agony or for one who is
being goaded not to suffer pain?
And perhaps there is someone
among those who are standing among us here who is ailing with this sickness of
the mind and makes excuses in sins (Psalm 140:4, Septuaginta), and who,
through his own negligence in observing the commandments, attempts to transfer
the blame to the law-giver for laying down things that are unattainable. How is
it possible for me always to rejoice, he may ask, when I have no grounds for
being joyous? For the factors that cause rejoicing are external and do not
reside within us: the arrival of a friend, long-term contact with parents,
finding money, honors bestowed on us by other people, restoration to health
after a serious illness, and everything else that makes for a prosperous life:
a house replete with goods of all kinds, an abundant table, close friends to
share ones gladness, pleasant sounds and sights, the good health of our nearest
and dearest, and whatever else gives them happiness in life. For it is not only
the pains that befall us which cause us distress, but also those that afflict
our friends and relatives. It is from all of these sources, therefore, that we
must garner joy and cheerfulness of soul.
In addition to these things, when
we have occasion to see the downfall of our enemies, wounds inflicted on those
who plot against us, recompense for our benefactors, and, in general, if no
unpleasant circumstance whatsoever that would disturb our life is either at
hand or expected, only then is it possible for joy to exist in our souls. How
is it, therefore, that a commandment has been given to us that cannot be
accomplished by our own choice, but depends on other antecedent factors? How am
I to pray without ceasing, when the needs of the body necessarily attract the
attention of the soul to themselves, given that the mind cannot attend to two
concerns at the same time?
2. And yet, I have been commanded
to give thanks in everything. Am I to give thanks when I am strapped to a rack,
tortured, stretched out on a wheel, and having my eyes gouged out? Am I to give
thanks when I am beaten with humiliating blows by one who hates me? When I am
stiff from the cold, perishing from hunger, tied to a tree, suddenly bereft of
my children, or deprived even of my very wife? If I lose my wealth as a result
of a sudden shipwreck? If I run into pirates on the sea, or brigands on the mainland?
If I am wounded, slandered, wander around, or dwell in a dungeon?
Raising these objections, and
more besides, our adversaries find fault with the lawgiver, thinking that, by
slandering the precepts that we have been given as impossible to fulfill, they
furnish themselves with a defense for their own sins. What, therefore, shall we
say in response to them?
That, while the Apostle is
looking elsewhere and attempting to elevate our souls from the earth to the
heights and to transport us to a heavenly way of life, they, unable to attain
to the loftiness of the lawgivers mind, and preoccupied with the earth and the
flesh, crawl around in the passions of the body like worms in a swamp and
demand that the Apostle issue precepts which are capable of being fulfilled.
For his part, the Apostle summons not just anyone, but one who is as he was to
rejoice always, no longer living in the flesh, but having Christ living in
himself, since union with the highest good does not in any way allow sympathy
for the demands of the flesh (cf. Galatians 2:20). And even if an incision is
made in the flesh, the disintegration occasioned by its continued presence
remains in the part of the body that suffers it, since the pain is unable to
spread to the noetic part of the soul. For, if, in accordance with the Apostles
precept, we have mortified our members which are upon the earth (Colossians
3:5) and we bear in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus (II Corinthians 4:10),
necessarily the injury suffered by the mortified body will not reach the soul
which has been freed from contact with the body. Dishonor, losses, and deaths
of our nearest and dearest will not rise up to the mind, nor will they incline
the sublimity of the mind to sympathy with things below. For, if those who fall
into difficulties have the same attitude as the virtuous man, they will not
cause annoyance to anyone, seeing that not even they themselves endure
sorrowfully what befalls them; but if they live according to the flesh (Romans
8:13), not even in this way will they annoy anyone, but will be reckoned
pitiable, not so much because of their circumstances, as because they do not
choose to react properly.
In short, a soul which has once
and for all been held fast by the desire for its Creator and is accustomed to
delighting in the beauties of the heavenly realm will not alter its great joy
and cheerfulness under the influence of carnal feelings, which are varying and
unstable; but things which distress other people it will regard as increasing
its own gladness. Such was the Apostle, who took pleasure in infirmities, in
afflictions, in persecutions, and in necessities, counting his needs an
occasion for glorying (II Corinthians 12:9-10); in hunger and thirst, in cold
and nakedness, in persecutions and distresses (II Corinthians 12:10; 11:27),
conditions in which others endure only with difficulty, bidding farewell to
life: in these he rejoiced. Therefore, those who are ignorant of what the
Apostle has in mind, and do not understand that he is calling us to the
evangelical way of life, dare to accuse St. Paul of laying down things that are
impossible for us. Well then, let them learn how many legitimate occasions for
rejoicing are made available to us through Gods munificence. We were brought
from non-being into being; we were made in the image of the Creator (Genesis
1:27); we have the mind and reason to perfect our nature, and through them we
have knowledge of God. And perceiving the beauties of nature carefully, we
thereby recognize, as if through letters, Gods great providence and wisdom
concerning all things. We are capable of discerning good and evil; we are
taught by nature itself to choose what is beneficial and to avoid what is
harmful. Having been estranged from God through sin, we have been called back
to kinship with Him, being released from ignominious slavery by the blood of
His Only-begotten Son. We have the hope of resurrection, the enjoyment of
Angelic goods, the Kingdom of Heaven, and promised goods, which transcend the
grasp of mind and reason.
3. How is it not proper to think
that these things are sufficient reasons for unending joy and unceasing
gladness? How is it proper to suppose that one who is a glutton, who delights
in hearing flute-playing, and who lies on a soft bed and snores, is living a
life worthy of joy? I would say that such people are worthy of lamentation on
the part of those who are endowed with intelligence, whereas we should call
blessed those who endure the present life in the hope of the age to come and
who exchange present joys for eternal joys. Whether they stand amid flames, as
did the three Youths in Babylon, who were united with God (Daniel 3:21), or are
shut up with lions (Daniel 6:16-23), or swallowed by a whale (Jonah 2:1), we
should call them blessed, and they should pass their lives in joy, not being
distressed over present sufferings, but rejoicing in the hope of what is in
store for us in the next life. For, in my opinion, a good athlete, once he has
stripped down for the arena of piety, should valiantly endure the blows of his
adversaries in hope of the glory that comes from crowns of victory. Indeed, in
gymnastic contests, those who have become inured to pain in wrestling schools
are not depressed at the prospect of suffering pain from blows, but advance to
close quarters with their foes, disdaining momentary pains in their desire to
be publicly proclaimed victors. Thus, even if some misfortune befalls a
virtuous man, it will not cast a shadow over his joy. For tribulation worketh
patience, and patience, experience, and experience, hope; and hope maketh not
ashamed (Romans 5:3-5). Hence, in another place, Saint Paul enjoins us to be
patient in tribulation and to rejoice in hope (Romans 12:12). It is hope,
therefore, that makes joy to dwell within the soul of a virtuous man. But the
same Apostle bids us weep with those who weep (Romans 12:15); and, writing to
the Galatians, he wept over the enemies of the Cross of Christ (Philippians
3:18). And what need have I to speak of the tears of Jeremiah (Lamentations),
of Ezekiel writing lamentations over the rulers of Israel, at Gods command
(Ezekiel 2:9), or of many other Saints who mourned? Alas, my mother, that thou
hast borne me (Jeremiah 15:10); Woe is me, for the godly man hath perished from
the earth, and there is none among men that ordereth his way aright (Micah
7:2); Woe is me, for I am become as one gathering straw in the harvest (Micah
7:1).
So, in a word, scrutinize the
sayings of the righteous, and when anywhere you find one of them emitting a
rather doleful expression, you will be convinced that all who are of this world
bemoan the misery of the life that is led therein. Woe is me, for my sojourning
is prolonged (Psalm 119:5, Septuaginta). For the Apostle has a desire to
depart, and to be with Christ (Philippians 1:23). He is, therefore, vexed at
the prolongation of this earthly sojourn as an impediment to his joy. David,
too, bequeathed to us a lamentation in song for his friend Jonathan, in which
he also mourned for his enemy: I am grieved for thee, my brother Jonathan (II
Kings 1:26); and: O daughters of Israel, weep for Saul (II Kings 1:24). He
mourns for Saul, as one who died in sin, but for Jonathan, as one who shared
his life in every respect. Why should I speak of the other examples? And yet,
the Lord wept over Lazarus (St. John 11:35) and He wept over Jerusalem (St.
Luke 19:41), and He calls blessed those who mourn (St. Matthew 5:4) and
likewise those who weep (St. Luke 6:21).
4. But how, you say, are these
things to be reconciled with the words: Rejoice always? For weeping and joy do
not derive from the same source. Weeping, for example, is naturally engendered
as a result of some blow, in which the involuntary impact strikes and
constricts the soul, while the spirit surrounding the heart is depressed; but
joy is like a leap of the soul, as it were, which rejoices at things that are
under its control. Hence, the physical symptoms are different. For, in the case
of those who are distressed, their bodies are sallow, livid, and cold, whereas
in the case of those who feel joyous, the condition of their bodies is
efflorescent and reddish, while their souls all but leap outwards, propelled by
delight.
To this we will say that the
Saints lamented and wept on account of their love for God. And so, ever
beholding Him Whom they loved and increasing the gladness that they themselves
derived from Him, they provided for the needs of their fellow-servants, mourning
for those who sinned and correcting them through their tears. Just as people
who stand on the shore and feel sympathy for those who are drowning in the sea
do not jettison their own security in their concern for those in peril, so
also, those who are distressed at the sins of their neighbors do not efface
their own gladness; on the contrary, they increase it, being vouchsafed the joy
of the Lord by virtue of the tears that they shed for their brothers. This is
why those who weep and those who mourn are blessed, for they themselves will be
comforted and they themselves will laugh. By laughter, one means not the sound
which is emitted through the cheeks when the blood boils, but the cheerfulness
which is pure and unmixed with any sadness. Therefore, the Apostle allows us to
weep with those who weep, because tears of this kind are like the seed and
pledge of eternal joy. Ascend with me in mind, please, and behold the Angelic
estate and consider whether any other condition befits them than that of
rejoicing and gladness; for they are vouchsafed to stand before God and enjoy
the ineffable beauty of the glory of Him Who created us. And so, it is to that
life that the Apostle urges us on, bidding us always to rejoice.
5. Now, as for the fact that the
Lord wept over Lazarus and the city, we have this to say: He ate and drank, not
because He needed these things Himself, but so as to leave you with measures
and limits by which to control the unavoidable emotions of the soul. Thus, He
wept in order to correct the propensity to excessive emotion and dejection
among those given to mourning and lamentation. For if there is anything that
needs to be moderated by reason, it is weeping: that is, over what things, to what
extent, when, and how it is proper to weep. For that the Lord’s weeping was not
emotional, but didactic, is clear from this verse: Our friend Lazarus sleepeth;
but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep (St. John 11:11). Who among us
mourns for a sleeping friend, whom he expects to awake after a short while?
Lazarus, come forth (St. John 11:43). And the dead man was brought back to
life; he who was bound walked. This is a miracle within a miracle: that his
feet were bound with grave-clothes and yet were not prevented from moving. That
which strengthened him was greater than that which impeded him.
Why, therefore, did the Lord, Who
was about to accomplish such things, judge the incident worthy of tears? Is it
not clear that, disregarding our infirmity in every way, He contained the
necessary emotions within certain measures and limits, avoiding a lack of
sympathy, on the one hand, as something appropriate to wild beasts, and, on the
other hand, refusing to give way to excessive grief and lamentation as
something ignoble? Hence, in weeping over His friend, He both displayed that He
Himself shared in our human nature, and freed us from either kind of extreme,
allowing us neither to indulge our emotions nor to be unfeeling in the face of
sorrows.
Therefore, just as the Lord
accepted hunger, after digesting solid food, submitted to thirst, after the
moisture in His body was consumed, and felt weary, when His muscles and nerves
were strained from travelling–although it was not that His Divinity succumbed
to weariness, but that His body accepted its natural attributes; so also, He
accepted weeping, permitting a natural property of the flesh to supervene. This
occurs when the hollow parts of the brain, filled with vapors arising from
grief, discharge the burden of moisture through the opening of the eyes as
through some kind of duct. Hence, one experiences a certain ringing in the
ears, dizziness, and darkening of the eyes when he hears about unexpected
sorrows, and one’s head is set in a whirl by vapors which are emitted by
compressed heat deep inside him. Then, in my opinion, just as a cloud dissolves
into raindrops, so also the thickness of vapors dissolves into tears. Hence,
those who grieve feel a certain pleasure when they lament, because the burden
that weighs on them is secretly evacuated through weeping. Experience of events
proves the truth of this account. For we know many people who, in desperate
straits, forcibly restrain themselves from weeping; then, in some cases, they
fall into incurable sufferings, either apoplexy or paralysis, while in other
cases, they completely faint, their strength having been broken down, like a
weak support, by the weight of sorrow. For, what is observable in the case of
fire, that it is stifled by its own smoke if it does not escape, but rolls
around it–this, it is said, occurs also in the case of the faculty that governs
a living creature; that is, it wastes away and is extinguished if there is no
way for it to exhale.
6. Therefore, let those who are
given to mourning not adduce the Lords tears in support of their own weakness.
For, just as the food which the Lord ate is not an occasion of pleasure for us,
but, on the contrary, the highest criterion of restraint and sufficiency, so
also, His weeping is not an ordinance prescribing lamentation, but is a most
fitting measure and an exact standard whereby we may, with proper dignity and
decorum, endure sorrows while remaining within the limits of our nature. Thus,
neither women nor men are permitted to indulge in mourning and excessive
weeping, but only to the extent that it is fitting to grieve over sorrows; they
are permitted to shed a few tears, but this must be done calmly, without
bellowing or wailing, without rending one’s tunic or sprinkling oneself with
dust, or committing any of the other improprieties that are typical of those
who are ignorant of heavenly things. For one who has been purified by Divine
doctrine must be fenced around by right reason, as by a strong wall, and must
manfully and strenuously ward off the onslaughts of such emotions; he must not
accept any crowd of emotions that flows in, as it were, to some low-lying
place, with a submissive and compliant soul.
It is the mark of a craven soul,
and one that is lacking in the vigor that comes from hope in God, that it
utterly collapses and succumbs to adversities. For, just as worms are
particularly inclined to breed on more tender pieces of wood, so also sorrows
grow in men of lesser moral fiber. Was not Job adamantine in heart? Were his
inward parts not made of stone? His ten children fell dead in one brief moment
of time, overwhelmed by a calamity in the house of their gladness at a time of
enjoyment, when the Devil brought down their dwelling upon them. He saw the
table drenched with blood; he saw his children, who had been born at different
times, but who had ended their lives together. He did not wail aloud; he did
not pluck his hair out; he did not let out a degenerate cry; but he uttered
that thanksgiving which is renowned and acclaimed by all: the Lord gave, the
Lord hath taken away; as it seemed good to the Lord, so hath it come to pass;
blessed be the name of the Lord (Job 1:21). Was this man not lacking in
sympathy? How could this be so? For about himself, at any rate, he says: I wept
over every man who was afflicted (Job 30:25). But was he not lying when he said
this? But here, too, the truth bears witness to him that, in addition to his
other virtues, he was also truthful: ...That man was blameless, righteous,
godly, and truthful (Job 1:1).
Yet many of you keep on wailing
in dirges that are designed to express dejection, and you deliberately waste
away your soul with mournful melodies; and, just like the make-believe and
paraphernalia with which they adorn theatres to typify tragedies, so, also, you
suppose that the proper outfit for a mourner consists of black clothing,
squalid hair, dirt, and dust, complete with a darkened house and lugubrious
chanting, which preserves the wound of grief ever fresh in the soul. Let those
who have no hope do these things. You, however, have been taught, concerning
those who repose in Christ, that it [the body] is sown in corruption; it is
raised in incorruption; it is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory; it is
sown in weakness; it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body; it is
raised a spiritual body (I Corinthians 15:42-44). Why, then, do you weep for
one who has gone to change his vesture? Neither mourn for yourself, as one who
has been deprived of a helper in this life; for it is better to trust in the
Lord than to trust in man (Psalm 117:8-9, Septuaginta). Nor lament for
this helper, as one who has suffered a terrible calamity. For, a little later,
the trumpet sounding from Heaven will awaken him, and you will see him standing
before the judgment-seat of Christ. So, dismiss these dejected and ignorant
cries: Alas, these unexpected woes! Who would have thought that this would
happen? Could I have ever anticipated that I would cover this dearest friend of
mine with earth? If we should hear someone else saying such things, it behooves
us to blush, since we have been taught from both past memories and present
experience that these natural occurrences are inevitable.
7. Therefore, neither untimely
deaths nor other misfortunes that unexpectedly befall us will ever cause
consternation in us who have been educated by the doctrine of piety. For
example, let us say that I had a son who was a young man–the sole heir of my estate,
the comfort of my old age, the adornment of his family, the flower of his
peers, the support of his household, and at that time of life which is most
charming–, this lad having been carried off by death, he becoming earth and
dust who, a short while ago, uttered sweet sounds and was a most pleasing sight
in the eyes of his father. What, then, am I to do? Shall I rend my clothing?
Shall I consent to roll around on the ground, scream in vexation, and act in
front of those present like a child crying out in pain and having convulsions?
Rather, paying heed to the inevitability of events, that the law of death is
inexorable and affects every age-group alike, dissolving all compound things in
order, surely I should not be surprised at what has happened. Surely I should
not be upset in my mind, as if I had been devastated by some unexpected blow,
since I have been taught beforehand that, being mortal, I had a mortal son,
that there is no constancy in human affairs, and that nothing wholly abides for
those who possess it.
Why, even great cities, which
were renowned for the elegance of their buildings and the abilities of their
inhabitants, and conspicuous for their prosperity both in the countryside and
in the marketplace, now display tokens of their erstwhile dignity only in
ruins. A ship which has frequently been preserved from the sea, and which has
made countless speedy voyages and conveyed innumerable amounts of merchandise
for traders, vanishes with a single gust of wind. Armies which have many times
defeated their foes in battle have, on suffering a reversal of fortune, become
a pitiful sight and one pitiful to relate. Entire nations and islands, which
have attained great power, and have raised many trophies both by land and by
sea, and have gathered much wealth from booty, have either been consumed by the
passage of time or been taken captive and exchanged their liberty for
enslavement. Indeed, in short, whatever great and unbearable evil you care to
mention, life already has prior examples of it.
Therefore, just as we determine
weights by a turn of the scale and assay gold by rubbing it with a touchstone,
so also, if we were to remember the limits revealed to us by the Lord, we would
never exceed the bounds of prudence. Whenever, therefore, any involuntary
adversity befalls you, by virtue of being mentally prepared, you will avoid
confusion, and you will make light of present afflictions by your hope for the
future. For, just as those whose eyes are weak divert their gaze from things
that are excessively bright and give them rest by looking at flowers and grass,
so, also, the soul must not constantly behold that which causes grief or be
fixated on present sorrows, but must direct its gaze towards what is truly
good. In this way will it be feasible for you always to rejoice, if your life
always looks towards God and if hope of recompense alleviates life’s dolors.
Have you been dishonored? Then
have regard for the glory which is laid up in Heaven through patient endurance.
Have you suffered a loss? Then contemplate the heavenly wealth and treasure
which you have laid up for yourself through your good deeds. Have you been
expelled from your homeland? Then you have Jerusalem as your heavenly homeland.
Have you lost a child? Then you have Angels, with whom you will dance around
the Throne of God, rejoicing eternally. By thus opposing anticipated good
things to present sorrows, you will keep your soul in the cheerfulness and
tranquillity to which the Apostles precept summons us. Neither let the joys of
human affairs create immoderate and excessive gladness in your soul, nor let
sorrows diminish its exultation and sublimity by feelings of dejection and
abasement. Unless you have previously trained yourself in this way regarding
the eventualities of life, you will never have a calm and tranquil life. But
you will easily achieve this if you have dwelling within you the commandment
which advises you always to rejoice, dismissing the vexations of the flesh and
gathering that which gladdens the soul, transcending the sensation of present
realities and extending your mind to the hope of eternal realities, the mere
thought of which is sufficient to fill the soul with rejoicing and to make
Angelic exultation reside in our hearts; in Christ Jesus our Lord, to Whom be
the glory and the dominion, unto the ages. Amen.
Translated for the first time from the Greek original by
Hieromonk Patapios. The Greek text of this homily is found in the Patrologia
Græca, Vol. XXXI, cols. 217B-237A. From Orthodox
Tradition, Vol. XVII (2000), No. 4, pp. 22-29.
