A word of admonition about abstinence.

When those engaged in any sciences discover a love for their studies when there are incentives on the part of the mentor, then such diligence of the children is usually attributed to the fear instilled by the teacher; but if even in the absence of a teacher, children do not abandon their concern for learning, then, obviously, their diligence comes from a sincere disposition. And we are listeners of the lessons of fasting. But when we show due respect to him when he is present, then our zeal seems to be instilled in us from the outside; and now, when fasting has passed, everyone who abstains from satiety deserves praise to the extent of his sincere disposition, as devoted to abstinence without coercion, as moderate from the heart, as able to observe the benefits acquired by previous labors. He who falls into immoderation regarding food does not appreciate what he has collected while fasting, does not know what riches he has acquired, but as someone who has nothing within himself, as someone who has not accumulated any treasures within himself, he gives himself over to immoderation in food, does not put barriers to his desires, does not fence himself off with the doors of moderation. And there is nothing surprising about this. Indeed, anyone to whom this happens does not care about doors and locks, is not bothered by anxious thoughts, sleeps carefree, since he has nothing tempting for thieves and cannot be robbed. Those who have a rich house, of course, must take care of the collected treasures, there must be gatekeepers guarding the entrance. We, too, were enriched by fasting, and the signs of this wealth are obvious: we subjugated pleasures to ourselves, acquired dominion over the belly, which we previously served, experienced disembodied life, created for ourselves a new house of abstinence, to which only the foundation had been laid until now. But we need to consolidate what we have achieved, we need to work on completing it. Drunkenness, of course, serves to weaken, and not to strengthen, to waver, and not to strengthen the foundation. No one shakes the foundation, which is laid skillfully, no one leaves a rich treasury unguarded. The soul of a fasting person is like the storeroom of some famous rich man and needs vigilant protection so as not to be robbed; after all, the soul can be robbed like a house. David's house of his soul was full of wealth, but he was robbed, like a predator, by pleasure, because he left access to the soul open and did not protect it with the gates of moderation. In what way did he neglect moderation? The fact that it gave a lot of rest to the body. “One evening,” the book of Kings says, “David got out of bed and walked on the roof of the king’s house.” In the evening, he arose from sleep and walked; sleep and after-sleep revelry expose him as a person given over to debauchery: wide scope for gluttony. What harm came out of this for him? “And from the roof I saw a woman bathing; and that woman was very beautiful” (2 Samuel 11:2). And sending for her, he dishonored her. What he saw was not yet to blame: no one would blame the eyes for seeing what is visible. But the thing, innocent in itself, served as a reason for sin for David, because, seeing the female figure, he did not hasten to take his eyes off her, but seemed to be nailed to her beauty: he did not take his eyes off the woman’s body, as if he was washing the virgins with his gaze, and it was no longer the virgins that were in his eyes, but harlots. A simple glance can bring so much evil if you don’t curb it in time. So now we can dispose of food at our discretion, just as David could control his gaze then. But the attack of sin brings responsibility upon the innocent. How exactly? Let the body be content with food: “the worker is worthy of his food” (Matthew 10:10). But let Paul be present at our dinner, and if he sees someone disorderly in food, as a doctor, he will stop the disorderly person with the cry: “Having food and clothing, let us be content with that” (1 Tim. 6:8) - food, and not pleasure, food, and not indulgence in drunkenness. Pleasure once led the Israelites to a pagan dance, and wine captivated their minds: “The people sat down,” says Scripture, “to eat and drink, and then rose up to play” (Ex. 32:6). So, let us control ourselves in satisfying our needs; let food serve us to support the body; needing rest, let us avoid being burdened by satiety, let us be moderate in food; let us avoid shameful drunkenness and avoid danger; let us follow Paul’s admonition: “Do not get drunk with wine, which causes debauchery; but be filled with the Spirit” (Eph. 5:18). Creations attributed to St. John Chrysostom, and classified in the Minya edition as Spuria. The paragraphs in the text were arranged by us. – Editorial staff of “ABC of Faith” You might be interested in: