Num 9 unclean-by-corpse; second-month Pascha; dead ways outside church
Cyril: ‘And the men who were unclean by reason of a human soul came forward and could not keep the Passover on that day. And they came before Moses and Aaron that day and said: We are unclean by reason of a human soul; must we then fall short of offering the Lord’s gift in its season among the sons of Israel? And Moses said to them: Stand here, and I will hear what the Lord will command concerning you. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: Speak to the sons of Israel: If anyone becomes unclean by reason of a human soul, or is on a long journey among you or among your generations, he shall keep the Lord’s Passover in the second month on the fourteenth day; toward evening they shall keep it; they shall eat it on unleavened bread and bitter herbs by night; they shall leave none of it until morning, and they shall not break a bone of it. According to the law of the Passover they shall keep it.’ (Num 9:6-12)
Those unclean by a corpse image those who still wear dead manners outside the Church’s way; yet God opens a second season of mercy so that they may not be wholly deprived of the gift — provided they come cleanly to the feast. (Eph 2:1-5; Col 3:5-10)
Palladius: The word is saving, and worthy of God.
Greek
Καὶ παρεγένοντο οἱ ἄνδρες οἳ ἦσαν ἀκάθαρτοι ἐπὶ ψυχῇ ἀνθρώπου, καὶ οὐκ ἠδύναντο ποιῆσαι τὸ Πάσχα ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ. Καὶ προσῆλθον ἐναντίον Μωσῆ καὶ Ἀαρὼν ἐν ἐκείνῃ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ, καὶ εἶπαν οἱ ἄνδρες ἐκεῖνοι πρὸς αὐτόν· Ἡμεῖς ἀκάθαρτοι ἐπὶ ψυχῇ ἀνθρώπου, μὴ οὖν ὑστερήσωμεν προσενέγκαι τὸ δῶρον Κυρίῳ κατὰ καιρὸν αὐτοῦ ἐν μέσῳ υἱῶν Ἰσραήλ. Καὶ εἶπε πρὸς αὐτοὺς Μωσῆς· Στῆτε αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀκούσομαι τί ἐντελεῖται Κύριος περὶ ὑμῶν. Καὶ ἐλάλησε Κύριος πρὸς Μωσῆν, λέγων· Λάλησον τοῖς υἱοῖς Ἰσραὴλ, λέγων· Ἄνθρωπος, ὃς ἐὰν γένηται ἀκάθαρτος ἐπὶ ψυχῇ ἀνθρώπου, ἢ ἐν ὁδῷ μακρὰν ὑμῖν, ἢ ἐν ταῖς γενεαῖς ὑμῶν, καὶ ποιήσει τὸ Πάσχα Κυρίῳ· ἐν τῷ μηνὶ τῷ δευτέρῳ ἐν τῇ τεσσαρεσκαιδεκάτῃ ἡμέρᾳ, τὸ πρὸς ἑσπέραν ποιήσουσιν αὐτὸ, ἐπ' ἀζύμων καὶ πικρίδων τῇ νυκτὶ φάγονται αὐτὸ, οὐ καταλείψουσιν ἀπ' αὐτοῦ εἰς τὸ πρωῒ, καὶ ὀστοῦν οὐ συντρίψουσιν ἀπ' αὐτοῦ. Κατὰ τὸν νόμον τοῦ Πάσχα ποιήσουσιν αὐτό. Καὶ ἄνθρωπος ὃς ἐὰν καθαρὸς ᾖ, καὶ ἐν ὁδῷ μακρὰν οὐκ ἔστι, καὶ ὑστερήσῃ ποιῆσαι τὸ Πάσχα, ἐξολοθρευθήσεται ἡ ψυχὴ ἐκείνη ἐκ τοῦ λαοῦ αὐτῆς, ὅτι τὸ δῶρον Κυρίῳ οὐ προσήνεγκε κατὰ τὸν καιρὸν αὐτοῦ, ἁμαρτίαν αὐτοῦ λήψεται ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἐκεῖνος. Ἐὰν δὲ προσέλθῃ πρὸς ὑμᾶς προσήλυτος ἐν τῇ γῇ ὑμῶν, καὶ ποιήσῃ τὸ Πάσχα Κυρίῳ κατὰ τὸν νόμον τοῦ Πάσχα, καὶ κατὰ τὴν σύνταξιν αὐτοῦ, οὕτω ποιήσει αὐτὸ, νόμος εἷς ἔσται ὑμῖν, καὶ τῷ προσηλύτῳ, καὶ τῷ αὐτόχθονι τῆς γῆς.»
{ΠΑΛΛ.} Καὶ τίνες ἂν εἶεν οἱ ἀκάθαρτοι μὲν ὡς ἐπ' ἀνθρώπου ψυχῇ, πρόφασιν δὲ τοῦ μὴ δύνασθαι τὸ Πάσχα πληροῦν τὸ χρῆμα ποιούμενοι, βουλοίμην ἂν εἰδέναι σαφῶς, ὡς εὖ ἴσθι τοι.
{ΚΥΡ.} Πολὺς μὲν δὴ λίαν τῆς ἱστορίας ὁ λόγος. Μεμνήσομαι γὰρ διακεκραγότος Θεοῦ πρὸς τὸν ἱεροφάντην Μωσέα· «Λάλησον τοῖς υἱοῖς Ἰσραὴλ, καὶ ἐξαποστειλάτωσαν ἐκ τῆς παρεμβολῆς πάντα λεπρὸν καὶ πάντα γονοῤῥυῆ, καὶ πάντα ἀκάθαρτον ἐπὶ ψυχῇ.» Καὶ ἅλις μὲν ἡμῖν ὁ περὶ τουτωνὶ πεπόνηται λόγος. Πλὴν ἐκεῖνό φημι χρησίμως εἰς τὸ παρόν. Ἀκάθαρτον μὲν γὰρ ἐπ' ἀνθρώπου ψυχῇ τὸ Γράμμα λέγει τὸ ἱερὸν, τὸν ἐπὶ νεκρῷ μεμολυσμένον· ἀπείρηται γὰρ καὶ ἀψύχου σώματος ἀποθίγειν, καὶ τοῖς πενθοῦσί τινα τῶν ἀγχοῦ καὶ ἐξ αἵματος τῆς ἀκαθαρσίας τὴν γραφὴν τὸ ἀρχαῖον ἐπετίθει θέσπισμα. Τοιγάρτοι καὶ ἐξεπέμποντο τῆς παρεμβολῆς. Ὑπετύπου δὲ αὖ διὰ τούτων ὁ νόμος, ὡς ἀνίερος ἔσται τις καὶ νοητῆς ἀκαθαρσίας ἔμπλεως, τῆς ἑτέρου νεκρότητος μετεσχηκὼς, ὡς ἐν ἤθει τε καὶ τρόποις· νεκροὶ γὰρ τοὺς τρόπους οἱ περὶ ὧν ἂν λέγοιτο παρὰ Χριστοῦ «Ἄφες τοὺς νεκροὺς θάπτειν τοὺς ἑαυτῶν νεκρούς.» Ἔξω δὴ οὖν τῆς θείας αὐλῆς, καὶ τῆς τῶν πρωτοτόκων Ἐκκλησίας, καὶ τῆς τῶν ἁγίων ἀγέλης ἀπόπεμπτος, ὁ τοῖς τὰ νεκρὰ φρονεῖν τε καὶ δρᾷν εἰωθόσι κεκοινωνηκὼς, ἢ καὶ ἀγχοῦ γεγονὼς, κατά γε τὸ ἑλέσθαι φημὶ τὰ ἴσα φρονεῖν τε καὶ δρᾷν. Ἀλλ' ὧδε μὲν ἔχει τοῦ νόμου τὸ αἴνιγμα. Πρὸς διάνοιαν δὲ τὴν ἀληθῆ, καὶ ὅτι μάλιστα τὴν πρεπωδεστάτην ἡμῖν τοῖς πνευματικοῖς, τοὺς ἀκαθάρτους ἐπὶ ψυχῇ ἀνθρώπου, ταύτῃ τοι καὶ ἐν μηνὶ
About this text
Cyril continues the dialogue with Palladius. Book 17 of a seventeen-book dialogue — the final book of the series.
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 17 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 17 (Aubert reprint) (Greek · Book 17)
- Checked print PDF of PG 68 De adoratione (Greek · Book 17)
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.