through the death of the corruptible man, and through the contempt for pride, and through the abatement of the belly, and through the fear of the judgement, and through the promise of certainty; through the desire for these glorious things the fathers have acquired in the soul the spiritual body.
557. B. How can I conquer the passions which trouble me when they are fixed in me by nature?
O.M. By thy death to this world; for if thou dost not bury thy soul in the grave of persistent endurance the spiritual Adam can never be quickened in thee. When a dying man hath departed from this temporary life he hath no consciousness of this world, and all his perceptions are at rest and are abated. Now if thou forsakest that which is of nature naturally, and thou dost not perform it voluntarily in thy person, thou art dead; but if thy desire dieth in repentance, the whole of [thy] nature ceaseth from this temporary life by the death of the spirit just as do the motions of the body at the natural end of time.
558. B. To what extent is a man held capable of revelation?
O.M. To the same extent as a man is capable of stripping off sin, both internally and externally. For when a man dieth by spiritual sacrifice, [he dieth] to all the words and deeds of this habitation of time, and when he hath committed his life to the life which is after the revivification, Divine grace bestoweth itself upon him, and he becometh capable of divine revelations. For the impurity of the world is a dark covering before the face of the soul, and it preventeth it from discerning spiritual wisdom.
559. B. Is he who loveth money able to believe the promises?
O.M. No. If he believeth, wherefore doth he possess [riches]? Perhaps our hope is [set] upon gold, or perhaps the hand of the Lord is too small to redeem [us]? The body of our Lord is given unto us for [our] happiness, and His blood is the drink of our redemption, and He withholdeth from us the loaves of bread and the apparel which groweth old. He who loveth money is divided in his mind concerning God, and he prepareth for himself pleasures before God giveth them unto him; and though he rejoiceth in the promises in [his] word, he maketh them to be a lie by his deed. True indeed is the word of our Lord which He spake, “It is as difficult for the rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven as it is for a camel to go through the hole of the needle”; it is impossible to possess in one dwelling both God and mammon. Monks should, then, not belong unto the things which are seen.
560. B. Who is indeed the man of excellence?
O.M. He who crieth out always that he is a sinner, and asketh mercy from on high, whose word is laden with the
