Sojourners; leave your land
Cyril went on: For the one who walks on the earth, and has a bright citizenship in heaven, would reasonably appear, from the things themselves, a sojourner and a stranger in truth. And so the Savior's disciple commands that we ourselves also make this a conspicuous and fair boast, saying in this way: 'Beloved, I exhort you as sojourners and strangers to abstain from the fleshly desires which war against the soul.'
Palladius said: Would such a disposition then be enough toward the accomplishment of virtue — I mean, putting an end to the fleshly desires?
Cyril: If there should also be added, wisely, the things from the other fairness, clearly the spiritual. For it is written: 'Your commandment is very broad.' Or is not the stain in us double, of soul and of body? I would think that the things accustomed to wash must follow, and with much reason, equal in force and equal in work to the things accustomed to defile.
Palladius: You have spoken rightly.
Cyril: As then, of course, the dirt is double, of soul and of body, so the thorough cleansing would reasonably be of soul and of body. Yet that thinking it a sojourning, to love the life in the world, is not without profit for those so disposed, to see without toil, if someone should choose to make Abraham an image of the thing, to whom it was said by God: 'Go out from your land and from your kindred and from the house of your father. And come into a land which I will show you, and I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you, and I will make your name great, and you shall be blessed, and I will bless those who bless you, and those who curse you I will curse, and in you all the tribes of the earth shall be blessed.' You understand how he commanded him to set out not from land and house only, but also from the kindred, and also from the house of the father, and to come into a land which the one who calls would himself show?
Palladius: But what is this?
Cyril: Then is it not somehow clear that, when God calls into a following — clearly the spiritual — and wishes those he would choose to honor to creep out of the life in the world, I mean again the one in pleasures and loves of flesh, it is madness to think anything better than such a thing? For let a man count fatherland and race and father's house and the possession of earthly things as nothing. That is why the Savior himself also called us toward the equal courage, saying: 'He who loves father or mother above me is not worthy of me, and he who loves son or daughter above me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me.' And he added: 'And everyone who has left brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields or houses for the sake of my name shall receive many times more, and shall inherit eternal life.' Or do you not say that it is the work of the utmost strength understood in Christ, the so bright and conspicuous courage, which counts these things as nothing?
Greek
οὐρανοῖς τὸ πολίτευμα ἔχων πάροικός τε καὶ παρεπίδημος ἀληθῶς ἐξ αὐτῶν ἂν εἰκότως φαίνοιτο τῶν πραγμάτων. Καὶ γοῦν τοῦ Σωτῆρος ὁ μαθητὴς τοῦτο ποιεῖσθαι κελεύει, καὶ ἡμᾶς αὐτοὺς αὔχημα περιφανές τε καὶ εὐπρεπὲς, ὡδί πη λέγων· «Ἀδελφοὶ, παρακαλῶ ὡς παροίκους καὶ παρεπιδήμους ἀπέχεσθαι τῶν σαρκικῶν ἐπιθυμιῶν, αἵτινες στρατεύονται κατὰ τῆς ψυχῆς.»
{ΠΑΛΛ.} Ἆρ' οὖν ἀρκέσειε πρὸς κατόρθωσιν ἀρετῆς ἡ τοιάδε διάθεσις, τὸ καταλῆξαί φημι τῶν σαρκικῶν ἐπιθυμιῶν;
{ΚΥΡ.} Εἰ προσγένοιτο σοφῶς καὶ τὰ ἐκ τῆς ἑτέρας ἐπιεικείας, δῆλον δὲ ὅτι τῆς πνευματικῆς. Γέγραπται γάρ· «Πλατεῖα ἡ ἐντολή σου σφόδρα.» Ἢ οὐχὶ διττὸς ἐν ἡμῖν ὁ μολυσμὸς, ψυχῆς τε καὶ σώματος; Ἕπεσθαι δεῖν οἰηθείην ἂν, καὶ λίαν εἰκότως, τοῖς καταμιαίνειν εἰωθόσιν, ἰσοπαλῆ τε καὶ ἰσουργὰ τὰ διασμήχειν εἰωθότα.
{ΠΑΛΛ.} Ὀρθῶς ἔφης.
{ΚΥΡ.} Ὥσπερ οὖν ἀμέλει διττὸς ὁ ῥύπος ψυχικός τε καὶ σωματικὸς, οὕτω καὶ ἡ διακάθαρσις ψυχική τε καὶ σωματικὴ γένοιτ' ἂν εἰκότως. Πλὴν ὅτι τὸ παροικίαν ἡγεῖσθαι, φιλεῖν τὴν ἐν κόσμῳ ζωὴν, τοῖς τῇδε διακειμένοις οὐκ ἀκερδὲς ἀταλαιπώρως ἰδεῖν, εἴπερ ἕλοιτό τις εἰκόνα τοῦ πράγματος ποιεῖσθαι τὸν Ἀβραὰμ, πρὸς ὃν εἴρηται παρὰ Θεοῦ· «Ἔξελθε ἐκ τῆς γῆς σου καὶ ἐκ τῆς συγγενείας σου, καὶ ἐκ τοῦ οἴκου τοῦ πατρός σου. Καὶ δεῦρο εἰς γῆν, ἣν ἄν σοι δείξω, καὶ ποιήσω σε εἰς ἔθνος μέγα, καὶ εὐλογήσω σε, καὶ μεγαλυνῶ τὸ ὄνομά σου, καὶ ἔσῃ εὐλογητὸς, καὶ εὐλογήσω τοὺς εὐλογοῦντάς σε, καὶ τοὺς καταρωμένους σε καταράσομαι, καὶ εὐλογηθήσονται ἐν σοὶ πᾶσαι αἱ φυλαὶ τῆς γῆς.» Συνίης ὅπως οὐκ ἐκ γῆς τε καὶ οἴκου μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐκ τῆς συγγενείας, καὶ μὴν καὶ ἐκ τοῦ οἴκου τοῦ πατρὸς ἀπαίρειν ἐκέλευσεν, ἥκειν τε εἰς γῆν, ἥνπερ αὐτὸς ἐκδείξειεν ὁ καλῶν;
{ΠΑΛΛ.} Ἀλλὰ τί δὴ τοῦτό ἐστιν;
{ΚΥΡ.} Εἶτά πως οὐκ ἐναργὲς, ὅτι Θεοῦ καλοῦντος εἰς ἀκολούθησιν, δῆλον δὲ ὅτι τὴν πνευματικὴν, καὶ τῆς ἐν κόσμῳ ζωῆς, φημὶ δὲ δὴ πάλιν τῆς ἐν ἡδοναῖς καὶ φιλοσαρκίαις, οὓς ἂν ἕλοιτο τιμᾷν, ἐξέρπειν ἐθέλοντος, ἀπόπληκτον κομιδῇ, τὸ ἡγεῖσθαί τι τοῦ τοιοῦδε ἄμεινον; Καταλογιζέσθω γὰρ ὡς οὐδὲν πατρίς τε καὶ γένος, καὶ οἶκος πατρὸς, καὶ τῶν ἐπιγείων ἡ κτῆσις. Τοιγάρτοι καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ Σωτὴρ πρὸς τὴν ἴσην ἡμᾶς ἀνδρείαν ἐκάλει, λέγων· «Ὁ φιλῶν πατέρα ἢ μητέρα ὑπὲρ ἐμὲ, οὐκ ἔστι μου ἄξιος, καὶ ὁ φιλῶν υἱὸν ἢ θυγατέρα ὑπὲρ ἐμὲ, οὐκ ἔστι μου ἄξιος· καὶ ὃς οὐ λαμβάνει τὸν σταυρὸν αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἀκολουθεῖ ὀπίσω μου, οὐκ ἔστι μου ἄξιος.» Προσετίθει δέ· «Καὶ πᾶς ὅστις ἀφῆκεν ἀδελφοὺς, ἢ ἀδελφὰς, ἢ πατέρα, ἢ μητέρα, ἢ γυναῖκα, ἢ τέκνα, ἢ ἀγροὺς, ἢ οἰκίας ἕνεκα τοῦ ὀνόματός μου, πολλαπλασίονα λήψεται, καὶ ζωὴν αἰώνιον κληρονομήσει.» Ἢ γὰρ οὐχὶ τῆς εἰς ἄκρον εὐσθενείας τῆς ἐν Χριστῷ νοουμένης ἔργον εἶναι φῂς, τὴν οὕτω λαμπρὰν καὶ