To Jews and Greeks and heretics; and to the words: (John 2:2)

Swallow chicks sit in the nest, waiting for the arrival of their parents, bringing them food; and after they see that they are... 1 fly on the light wing of the mind. In the same way, when I intend to approach this spiritual nest, I first raise my voice and glorify God for giving me such tenderly loving children. But, of course, among swallows food is given from mouth to mouth, but with us it does not happen that way, but from mouth to ear. And that (food) results in corruption, but this one results in incorruption; This one nourishes the body, this one fattens the soul. But I said all this not simply and not without reason; on the contrary, since the passage of the Gospel read today guides us to this teaching, it is necessary to instruct you. “Jesus was... called,” says (Scripture), “to marriage” (John 2:2). But, please, gather your thoughts, pay attention to what is being said. Since some make an excuse for marriage, others refer to children, others to military service, others to trade, others to art, others to slavery, others to wealth, others to poverty and something else like that, then, therefore, I want to show you that neither wealth is an obstacle, nor poverty, nor military service, nor trade, nor marriage, nor children, nor slavery, nor art, nor any other of these. Jesus was quickly called to the wedding. Did you go or didn’t you go? It is clear that he went. So, if He went, then how can marriage be bad? And you have no excuse? I not only say that He went, but also brought gifts, since He turned water into wine. So don't make excuses for marriage. Your Lord came to the marriage and glorified the marriage, and you dishonor the marriage and say that marriage is an obstacle? He is not any obstacle to piety. Do you want to know that it is not at all harmful to have a wife and children? Didn't Moses have a wife and children? Was Elijah a virgin? Was it not Moses who brought down manna from heaven, or did not Elijah bring down fire from heaven? Was it not Moses who caused the quails to fly? Didn't Elijah close heaven with a word? Didn't God talk to Moses? Didn’t God talk to Elijah too? Didn't Moses part the sea and lead the people? Was it not Elijah who ascended in a chariot of fire? Didn't virginity hurt this at all? Didn't your wife and children hinder this at all? You saw Elijah riding through the air, you saw Moses traveling through the sea; look at Peter, the pillar of the church, that he also had a wife. It is not written that Peter had a wife: how is it clear that he had a wife? I will say: “coming... Jesus,” says (Scripture), “to Peter’s mother-in-law; and she was sick, and he touched... her, and the fever left her; and she...served them” (Matthew 8:14–15). Do you see that Peter also had a wife? Where there is a mother-in-law, there - clearly - there is a wife. So do you see that Peter also had a wife? Don't slander the marriage. I say this so that no one will make an excuse of either wife, or children, or military service, or trade, or art, or slavery, or wealth, or poverty. These are excuses, these are pretexts, these are the evil intentions of the devil. You make military service an excuse and say that I am a warrior and cannot be pious. The centurion was not a warrior? And he tells Jesus that “I am not worthy for You to come under my roof, but just say the word, and my servant will be healed” (Matthew 8:8). And, surprised, Jesus says: “Truly I say to you, I have not found such faith in Israel” (Matthew 8:10). Did military service serve as no obstacle for him? But what are you? Craftsman? Also Paul, who was also a persecutor of churches, and after that became a preacher and apostle. But what are you? Rich? And so did Abraham, and he had a wife and children. “Abraham believed,” says (Scripture), “Abraham God, and this was counted to him as righteousness” (Rom. 4:3), and was called a friend of God. After all, wealth and a wife or children did not serve as an obstacle for him at all? And you have no justification. Here he has three pretexts, which you refer to in your justification, and a wife, and children, and wealth. But what are you? A slave? And Onesimus was a slave; and Paul, writing Philemon, said about Onesimus: “he was once unworthy... but now he is good for you and me” (Phil. 1:11). But what are you? And David was a king: and Nathan the prophet came to him and convicted him of the sin that he had committed. After all, he didn’t speak out against the prophet at all? Didn’t he recognize slavery even on the royal throne and didn’t he say: “I have sinned before the Lord”? And the prophet, seeing his repentance, said to him: “The Lord has taken away your sin” (2 Samuel 12:13). Repentance is quick, forgiveness is quick. The king did not hesitate at all and did not say: I am a king, dressed in purple and have a diadem on me, I also have a bow and arrows, and shields, and helmets, and warriors - defenders; shall I really be afraid of this poor man and not kill him, but will I endure him? He didn’t say anything like that, but even though he was a king, he knew that he had sinned, and therefore he repented, because he knew that he had committed a grave sin. After all, his royal dignity did not serve as an obstacle for him? But what - you? And Daniel was a youth, but he stopped the mouth of the lions, and tore the dragon to pieces, and deposed the elders, and saved Susanna, and the imperfection. youth did not at all serve as an obstacle to such great virtue. But what about you? Brotherly lover, too, and how great wisdom and chastity did he discover in relation to the Egyptian woman? He tore his tunic, but did not destroy his faith; overcame her shamelessness, but did not fulfill her passionate desire. But what are you? Widow? And the Sidonian woman was a widow, the one who received the prophet Elijah and fed him with bread and water, so that the culprit of the famine was not exhausted by hunger. But what are you? Harlot? Likewise, Rahab, who hid the spies and, after the children of Israel took possession of the land of promise, was saved—she herself, and her house, and her kindred. But what are you? Poor? Lazarus too, and how great wisdom and patience he showed in poverty, and, being in such need, he did not fall miserably. But what are you? Sexist? Same with Sampson; and although he was betrayed by a woman, God brought vengeance on him, and he was avenged with the assistance of foreigners. But what are you? Child lover? Jacob too. Do you see how many were saved? Do you have faith? You have everything. You have no faith, but you are a king? Royal dignity is not at all useful for you. However, I did not forget about the promise. So, “Jesus was... called... to marriage. When He arrived, they had no wine... His Mother said to Him: they have no wine. Jesus says to Her: What do I and You have, Woman? My hour has not yet come. And having said this, Jesus says...: Fill the vessels with water." And they filled the vessels with water, and He made the water wine (John 2:2–4, 7). But why did He say: “fill the vessels with water”? Couldn’t the One who created the heavens with a word and laid the foundation of the earth and created everything that is on them, whose gaze dries up the deeps, whose every creature trembles and fears, both in heaven and on earth and in the underworld, could not fill the vessels with a word? But He says: draw water. For what? I will say: so that if they deny, then their hands that drew water, and their shoulders that carried water, would convict them; He did the same in relation to Lazarus. Before arriving at the place, He tells the disciples: “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep” (John 11:11). Then, when Lazarus’ sisters came and told Him that Lazarus had died, He said to them, “Where did you lay him?” They say: “Come and see” (John 11:34). Oh, new and unusual things! Not long ago You told your disciples that Lazarus had died - and now you say: where will you lay him? You inform Your disciples in advance about his death - and you do not know the place of burial? He knew, but he speaks because of the Jews, since they were ungrateful, so the saying: where will you put it? was not a sign of ignorance, just as in paradise He said to Adam: “[Adam,] where are you” (Gen. 3:9)? Didn't He know where he was? But, since the devil told them that “in the day that you eat of the tree ... you will be like gods” (Gen. 3:5), and they believed that they had to be gods, then for this reason God says to him: “Adam, where are you” - after you ate and remained a man? That is why God said to him: “[Adam,] where are you?” . This is what He did in relation to Lazarus. Approaching the tomb, he said to the Jews: Take the stone from the tomb; and they took it. Lazarus’ sister said to Him: “Lord! already stinks; for he was in the tomb four days” (John 11:39). And “He cried with a loud voice: Lazarus! get out" (John 11:43); and he came out, tied with bandages. So, couldn't He who moves mountains into the depths of the seas move a stone with a word? He who crushed the sting of death, who destroyed the doors of hell, could not even rip off his bandages? And “he says to them: Loosen him” (John 11:44). For what? So that if they deny, their hands and eyes will expose them. Therefore He said: “Untie him.” And during the marriage He did the same, because He said to them: “Fill the vessels with water”; and they filled the vessels, and He made the water wine. That is why He established them from everywhere, since the Jews have always been ungrateful and shameless. Do you want to know how much God has given them, and they turned out to be unable to remember? Find out; but, please, concentrate, pay attention to what is being said, since I want to prove to you that the Jews from time immemorial were ungrateful. Seventy-five souls came to Egypt, and then there became six hundred thousand. Joseph died and another king arose among them, who did not remember Joseph; he greatly oppressed the children of Israel. Therefore they cried out to God, saying: Lord, You swore to our fathers that “I will give to your seed a land flowing with milk and honey” (Ex. 13:5); and now, Lord, remember the covenant that You made with our fathers, and deliver us from the hand of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and from Egyptian slavery. God, of course, heard their voice and sent Moses to them. But focus, please. God says to Moses: take a lamb without blemish, one year old, the firstborn, and offer it as a sacrifice, and everyone will anoint the door with its blood, so that when the angel comes with a drawn sword and sees that that dwelling has been anointed with blood, he will retreat; If he sees that it is not, then he should go in and destroy everyone. And Moses did so, and gave it to the people; and they took them and each anointed their doors. And the angel came with his sword drawn and saw the blood on the doors and retreated; and where he did not see, he entered and destroyed everyone. Yet this did not happen simply; but, since we have to be saved through blood and wood, that is why God said that everyone will anoint the doors with blood. Why didn’t he say: smear the blood on the wall? Because they could not be saved except through the tree. So Moses brought them out of Egypt and brought them into the desert, and they say to Moses, “Are there no tombs in Egypt, because you brought us to die in the desert?” ( Ex. 14:11 )? Wasn’t it good for us in Egypt when “we ate... cucumbers and melons and onions... and garlic” (Numbers 11:5)? Have you seen ingratitude? They themselves told God, they themselves demanded: lead us out of the land of Egypt, and when they came to the desert, they showed ingratitude. Have you seen their ingratitude? But find out something bigger and more special. They spent forty years in the desert; their hair and nails did not increase; their clothes were not dirty, their shoes were not worn out; they did not work, they did not dig the earth; they did not yoke oxen, did not pull the plow, did not cut furrows, did not pluck up thorns, did not throw seeds into the ground and did not wait for rain, did not wait for the hot rays of the sun, did not wait for the harvest time, did not sharpen a sickle or reap, did not bind the ears of grain and did not lift them, did not bring them into the threshing floor and did not strain, did not thresh, did not clear, did not knead flour, they baked and did not make bread - there was nothing like that, however, they ate bread that was not cultivated with their hands; they were offered a meal without preparation; in dispassion they imitated the angels; nature forgot about its weakness. And after such great good deeds, they said to Aaron: “Make us gods who would go before us, for with this man, with Moses, who brought us out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what happened” (Ex. 32:1); and they committed great violence against Aaron. He, seeing that they were hard-hearted and uncircumcised, said to them: take off your gold jewelry and throw it into the fire, and if anything comes out, it will be god. And an animal with an ox's head came out. Here, present to me an ungrateful heretic, a parasite Jew, who says that God gave birth and experienced variability. Lost, unfortunate and poor, do you think this about God? But we do not so - let it not be - but that the Father begat the Son, one only, God of God, the Perfect of the Perfect; These are the thoughts of Christians. So, you, apparently exploring the things above with curiosity, tell me about something that concerns you, if you think you know: how, after the gold jewelry was thrown into the fire, an animal with an ox’s head came out? The coppersmith didn’t prepare it, there was no smelter: how did an animal with an ox’s head come out, dare you say? If you do not know what is below, then how can you be overly curious about what is above? Without understanding your own, how can you be overly curious about what is alien? They also give us the gospel voice of the Son himself, telling the disciples: “I am the vine, and you are the branches, and My Father is the vinedresser” (John 15:5, 1). Do you see, says the Jew, that He created the Son? If the winegrower does not cultivate the vineyard, then the latter cannot be useful. And they think that they are saying something great and excellent. But please be careful. I said to the ungrateful Jews; let me tell the shameless heretics too. Can you tell me, ungrateful and shameless heretic, that the vinedresser does not eat from the vine? I defeat you with your weapon. So, just as a husbandman cultivates a vineyard, so the Father brought forth His Son. Let us see who feeds from what, the vineyard from the vinedresser, or the vinedresser from the vineyard. In your opinion, the Father has his existence from the Son, since there is no husbandman who is not nourished by his works. So what? Does the Son feed the Father? No, it won’t be, this is a matter of extreme madness. It is better to say: just as the husbandman rejoices over the vineyard, so the Father rejoices over the Son; He did not say that My Father created Me, but: My Father is the workman, because He rejoiced because of the Son. Didn't you hear Him say that “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17), when the Son stood in the Jordanian waves? Didn’t he say, “This is My Son,” whom I created, or, “Whom I created?” But he said: “In whom I am well pleased.” Do you really reject even this voice? And again he says: “I came down from heaven, not to do My will, but the will of the Father who sent Me” (John 6:38). Who did He talk to? Of course, to the Jews; since they said to Him: this is the son of a carpenter, and they looked at Him as if he were an atheist, that is why He said that “I came down from heaven,” and since they said that He was an atheist, that is why He told them that He did not come “to do My will, but the will of the Father who sent Me.” Since they apparently worshiped the Father, but rejected Him, He therefore condescended to their weakness, because how was He sent who is everywhere, Who fills everything? So, you see that for the sake of the Jews he said that “I came down from heaven.” Did He really speak for His own sake? You have no excuse, do you? But they also give us another testimony belonging to the apostle, who says: “one God the Father, from whom are all things, ... and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things” (1 Cor. 8:6). Are you saying that there is no other God like the Father? And I tell you that there is no other Lord like the Son. Why are we arguing? No, it won't! Let us therefore see with whom Paul spoke, and for whose sake this was said. But pay careful attention to my word. Since the Hellenes revered many gods, and the Jews allowed unity of command, in order to abolish both polytheism and unity of command, he said: “For although there are... many gods and many lords, either in heaven or on earth, yet we have one God the Father” (1 Cor. 8:5-6). And having said: one, he abolished polytheism because where there is one, there are not many; and having spoken about the Father, he abolished the unity of command, because where there is a father, it is clear that there is a son. So, for this reason he said: there is one God the Father, from Whom are all things, and one Lord Jesus Christ, Who is all things. You see that Paul was speaking to the Greeks and Jews; That’s why he said: “one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things,” since everything came into being through the Son, visible and invisible. And listen to what John says: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. It was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and without Him nothing came into being” (John 1:1-3). You see that He is the Creator of all things. Do you really dare to prove to me that the Son is considered together with all created things? But, ungrateful ones, how long will you go through the Scriptures, picking flowers from them, in order to somehow say that the Son is a creature and a creature? Would you like to know? If they hear exalted speech about the Son or in accordance with God’s dignity, they become furious; They think that someone is throwing dung into their mouth. I want to give you an example. If someone is burned with infirmity and severe fevers and if he feels relief, then doctors order to coat his lips with honey; so they do as the doctors order; but when the servants begin to take care of the sick man, he thinks that the honey is bitter; and although those present say: “This is honey, sir, it is beautiful,” convincing the patient, yet in his mouth the honey seems bitter, not because honey is bitter, because what is sweeter than honey? - not due to the natural properties of honey, but due to the weakness of the one who does not take it into himself; exactly the same thing happens with these: if they hear about the Consubstantial One, they think that they are being given bitterness to drink, and this happens not as a result of the word of the one who speaks, but because of the weak hearing of the one who cannot bear the word. The Father calls him Son; in the same way - the apostles, and they - the creature and the creature. How is He a creature? Are birth and creation the same thing? If everyone who gives birth creates and everyone who creates gives birth, then we will find that all creatures are sons of God; since everything happened through the Son, it follows that He who created it also gave birth. Do you see that the creatures are sons of God, according to what you say? How long will you remain ungrateful? Tell me, how is the Son honored? Because He is called the Son? You call yourself too. But what? God? And you. But you can tell me: He is the Son in fact, you are in name. If - in fact, then, therefore, He is the Son. Do you see that your mouth accuses you? [Not a little creature, not a creation at all]. He is the Son by nature, and you by name; He was born from the eternal Father, and you were created from the underlying substance. This is what I said against the Jews and the Greeks and the heretics. But we will glorify the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen. Here in Greek the original is obviously a pass. This conversation, classified in Min's edition as Spuria, is included in volume 1 of this edition. Since it was not published in volume 1 of our publication, we place it at the end of volume 2. You might be interested in: