Page:ParadiseOfTheHolyFathersV2.djvu/342

 blished the purity of heart which seeth God in a revelation of light.”

672. The brethren said, “How is it possible for a monk to die every day for the love of Christ, even as the blessed Paul said, ‘I swear by your boasting, my brethren, that, in our Lord Jesus Christ, I die daily, and the world is dead unto me, and I am crucified unto the world, and the world is crucified unto me, and I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me’?” The old man said, “A man [can do this] if he contemplate in silence at all seasons, and perform the other works of the body, I mean fasting, and vigil, and the recital of the books of the Psalms, and prayers, and genuflexions, and groanings, and pain, and weeping, and tears, and sighs, and the reading of the Holy Scriptures. And he must especially take care concerning the works of the mind, that is, the constant remembrance of God, and meditation upon Him and His blessings, and upon His commandments and His threatenings; and his gaze must always be on our Lord, and his prayer must be without ceasing and without wandering, and the odiousness of the passions must be away from the heart, and he must suppress with keenness the thoughts of the devils which arise at their prompting. And he must possess that excellence which is the first and most important of all the spiritual virtues, and of all the labours of the ascetic life of the mind, that is to say, death in respect of all the anxieties and cares of this world. And a monk must have no care, and no anxiety, and he must not think about anything, or seek anything, or desire anything, or lust for anything, except for the time when he will attain to the perfect love of God in our Lord Jesus Christ. And he must fulfil at all times the command of the blessed Paul, and his admonition to us wherein he said, ‘Love ye your Lord, rejoice in your hope, pray without ceasing, be fervent in spirit, endure your tribulations, be not anxious about anything, cast all your care upon the Lord; and let all your prayers, and all your requests, and all your petitions be made known unto God, to Whom be glory for ever and ever! Amen.’ ”

673. The brethren said, “How can love be acquired by men of understanding?” The old man said, “True and pure love is the way of life, and the haven of promises, and the treasure of faith, and it sheweth [the way of] the kingdom, and it is the expositor of the judgement, and the preacher concerning what is hidden.”

674. The brethren said, “We do not know the power of the word.” The old man said, “If a man doth not love God he will not believe in Him, and His promises are not certain to