Enter God’s house washed; all have sinned; God wipes iniquities
Cyril: …most beautifully into a house of God, both bright and washed-out, and gaining the familiarity toward him through sanctification. For then we will meet with a gracious God, and that we may speak thus, with a whole eye looking the things according to us, and distributing the sparing most fitting for the holy ones. ‘And upon whom will I look,’ he says, ‘but upon the humble and quiet and trembling at my words?’ (Isaiah 66:2) For truly holy hands will he stretch-up, and somehow unto the ear itself of the divinity will he cry-through, the one having thus, so as also having arrived unto an end of what things he might somehow pray, from over-joy to say: ‘He heard from his holy temple my voice, and my cry before him will go into his ears.’ (Psalm 18:6) Or did you not learn clearly with the all-divine David singing-up for us, that ‘Eyes of Lord are upon righteous ones, and his ears unto their entreaty’? (Psalm 34:15)
Palladius: I learned.
Cyril: That the word is true, it is not lawful to doubt, yet, upon at least the needing to rub-off defilements, what manner would there be by us? for no one will understand transgressions, and many things we all stumble. And the nature is sick with the easy unto sin, and is very easily-beside unto the having been natural to do-injustice, with the inclination unto the worthless somehow smoothing for us the way of the outlandish and abominable pleasure.
Palladius: You speak well; for I would agree having delayed nothing, for the one having chosen to speak-rightly.
Cyril: For already also the flesh from earth has been sick in itself with the law of the sin, and very easily-carried-aside is the human mind, unto the needing to turn-aside unto the evil things from youth, according to the having-been-written. (Genesis 8:21) Therefore also a sacred word is gloomy-upon for us justly: ‘For all,’ he says, ‘turned-aside, together they became useless, there is not one doing kindness, there is not until one.’ (Romans 3:12) And since God is as you, lifting-out lawlessnesses, and stepping-over injustices for the leftovers of his inheritance, and he did not hold unto a witness his wrath, because he is a willer of mercy?’ (Micah 7:18) And another again: ‘Remember these, Jacob and Israel, do not forget me. For behold I wiped-out as in a cloud your lawlessnesses, and as mist your sins.’ (Isaiah 44:21-22) And very many things one might collect the
Greek
παγκάλως εἰς οἶκον Θεοῦ, λαμπρούς τε καὶ ἐκνενιμμένους, οἰκειότητά τε τὴν πρὸς αὐτὸν δι' ἁγιασμοῦ κερδαίνοντας. Ἵλεῳ γὰρ τότε περιτευξόμεθα τῷ Θεῷ, καὶ ἵν' οὕτως εἴπωμεν, ὅλῳ βλέποντι τὰ καθ' ἡμᾶς ὀφθαλμῷ, καὶ τὴν τοῖς ἁγίοις πρεπωδεστάτην φειδὼ διανέμοντι. «Ἐπὶ τίνα δὲ ἐπιβλέψω,» φησὶν, «ἀλλ' ἢ ἐπὶ τὸν ταπεινὸν καὶ ἡσύχιον καὶ τρέμοντά μου τοὺς λόγους;» Ὁσίας γὰρ ὄντως ἀνατενεῖ χεῖρας, καὶ εἰς αὐτό που διακεκράξεται τὸ τῆς θεότητος οὖς, ὁ δὴ οὕτως ἔχων, ὡς καὶ εἰς πέρας ἥκων τῶν ὧν ἂν εὔξαιτο τυχὸν, ἐκ περιχαρείας εἰπεῖν· «Ἤκουσεν ἐκ ναοῦ ἁγίου αὐτοῦ φωνῆς μου, καὶ ἡ κραυγή μου ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ εἰσελεύσεται εἰς τὰ ὦτα αὐτοῦ.» Ἢ οὐ διεπύθου σαφῶς ἀναμελῳδοῦντος ἡμῖν τοῦ θεσπεσίου Δαβὶδ, ὅτι «Ὀφθαλμοὶ Κυρίου ἐπὶ δικαίους, καὶ ὦτα αὐτοῦ εἰς δέησιν αὐτῶν;»
{ΠΑΛΛ.} Ἐπυθόμην;
{ΚΥΡ.} Ὅτι μὲν ἔστιν ἀληθὴς ὁ λόγος, οὐκ ἐνδοιάσαι θέμις, πλὴν, ἐπί γε τὸ δεῖν ἀποτρίβεσθαι μολυσμοὺς, τίς ἂν γένοιτο πρὸς ἡμῶν ὁ τρόπος; συνήσει γὰρ δὴ παραπτώματα μὲν οὐδεὶς, πολλὰ δὲ πταίομεν ἅπαντες. Νοσεῖ δὲ ἡ φύσις τὸ εἰς ἁμαρτίαν εὔκολον, καὶ λίαν ἐστὶν εὐπάροιστος ἐπὶ τὸ πεφυκέναι ἀδικεῖν, καταλεαινούσης ἡμῖν τρόπον τινὰ τῆς ἐπὶ τὰ φαῦλα ῥοπῆς, τὴν ὁδὸν τῆς ἐκτόπου καὶ βδελυρᾶς ἡδονῆς.
{ΠΑΛΛ.} Εὖ λέγεις· συναινέσαιμι γὰρ ἂν μελλήσας οὐδὲν, ὀρθοεπεῖν ᾑρημένῳ.
{ΚΥΡ.} Ἤδη μὲν γὰρ καὶ ἡ ἀπὸ γῆς σὰρξ τὸν τῆς ἁμαρτίας ἐν ἑαυτῇ κατηῤῥώστησε νόμον, εὐπαράφορος δὲ λίαν ὁ ἀνθρώπινος νοῦς, ἐπὶ τὸ ἐκνεῦσαι δεῖν ἐπὶ τὰ πονηρὰ ἐκ νεότητος, κατὰ τὸ γεγραμμένον. Τοιγάρτοι καὶ λόγος ἡμῖν ἱερὸς ἐπιστυγνάζει δικαίως· «Πάντες γὰρ, φησὶν, ἐξέκλινον, ἅμα ἠχρειώθησαν, οὐκ ἔστι ποιῶν χρηστότητα, οὐκ ἔστιν ἕως ἑνός.» Ἐπειδὴ δὲ οὐκ ἦν ἀπόνευσις τοῦ κακοῦ, Σωτῆρα καὶ Λυτρωτὴν πέπομφεν ἡμῖν ἐξ οὐρανοῦ τὸν ἴδιον Υἱὸν ὁ Θεὸς καὶ Πατὴρ, δικαιοῦντα τῇ πίστει, καὶ ποινῆς ἀπαλλάττοντα, καὶ εὐσθενὲς μὲν λίαν ἀποτελοῦντα τὸ ἄναλκι, καταφωτίζοντα δὲ τὸ ἐσκοτισμένον, ἐπιστρέφοντα δὲ τὸ πλανώμενον, καὶ πλεονεξίας ἐξέλκοντα διαβολικῆς, τὸ ὑπεστρωμένον αὐτῷ.
{ΠΑΛΛ.} Ἐν Χριστῷ δὴ οὖν τὸ ἐκ τῆς ἁμαρτίας αἶσχος ἀποτριψόμεθα, διεσμηγμένοι δὲ οὕτω, καὶ μώμου παντὸς ἰόντες ὡς ἀπωτάτω, προσελευσόμεθα δι' αὐτοῦ τῷ Θεῷ καὶ Πατρί.
{ΚΥΡ.} Συνίης εὖ μάλα· διακεκραγότων καὶ αὐτῶν ἐπαΐοι τις ἂν τῶν ἁγίων προφήτων, τὴν οὕτως ἡμῖν ἀξιάγαστον καὶ πολύευκτον χάριν. Μιχαίας μὲν γὰρ ὁ σοφώτατος, ὧδέ πή φησι· «Τίς Θεὸς ὥσπερ σὺ, ἐξαίρων ἀνομίας, καὶ ὑπερβαίνων ἀδικίας τοῖς καταλοίποις τῆς κληρονομίας αὐτοῦ, καὶ οὐ συνέσχεν εἰς μαρτύριον ὀργὴν αὐτοῦ, ὅτι θελητὴς ἐλέους ἐστίν;» Ἕτερος δὲ αὖ· «Μνήσθητι ταῦτα, Ἰακὼβ καὶ Ἰσραὴλ,μὴ ἐπιλανθάνου μου. Ἰδοὺ γὰρ ἀπήλειψα ὡς ἐν νεφέλῃ τὰς ἀνομίας σου, καὶ ὡς γνόφος τὰς ἁμαρτίας σου.» Καὶ πλεῖστα μὲν ἄν τις συλλέξαιτο τὰ
About this text
Cyril continues the dialogue with Palladius. Book 15 of a seventeen-book dialogue — not the whole work.
English follows Migne PG 68 (Aubert reprint). The PDF and a cleaned text of the same print were checked against each other. This page is Book 15 of seventeen. This is a reading translation for study, not a new critical edition of the Greek.
Witnesses
- Copy-text Migne PG 68 De adoratione Book 15 (Aubert reprint) (Greek · Book 15)
- Checked print PDF of PG 68 De adoratione (Greek · Book 15)
English is newly prepared for study from the stated edition. Open Greek on each section for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.