On Clement of Rome and his First Epistle to the Corinthians
The so-called first The letter of Clement of Rome to the Corinthian Christians takes us into a completely different circle of views and concepts compared to the message of Barnabas: instead of reference(gnosis), busy with allegorical and mysterious, often arbitrary explanations of sayings, events and institutions of the Old Testament in relation to the revelation of the New Testament, which reminds us of Alexandria, in the letter of Clement we have before us the practical clarity and prudence of the Roman mind. This epistle, in which, however, the name of Clement is not given anywhere, is written on behalf of the Roman Church to the Corinthian Church: and here lies the high historical significance of this epistle. Two great Churches enter into intercourse with each other - the Church of the capital of the whole world and the main Church of the Hellenic people. The Church of Corinth, for which internal divisions and discords caused so much anxiety to its founder, the Apostle Paul, and aroused his paternal love and care, and here again, due to its Hellenic mobility, it appears to us drawn into a whirlpool of internal strife and self-willed movement against the church order and hierarchy. The Roman Church, calm within, comes to the aid of the Corinthian with a fraternal but firm word of exhortation to point out to those who have gone astray the true order and lawfulness of the church structure. It is clear how important the message of Clement is for the knowledge of ancient church relations.
The reason for writing the epistle we are considering, as Irenaeus testifies and is clear from its content, was the divisions and disputes that arose in the Corinthian Church. Even in the time of the apostles, as can be seen from the 1st Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians, a false direction appeared in this Church of some of its members, exalted by their wisdom, too highly appreciating extraordinary gifts of spiritual and external exploits of piety at the expense of true Christian love and holiness, prone to contention and ecclesiastical anarchy. A similar phenomenon occurred among the Corinthian Christians and at another time after the apostles. The then division was adjacent to the names of the two apostles: Peter and Paul, and the husband of the apostolic Apollos. Now, the perpetrators of the Corinthian disorganization were a few impudent and arrogant people (ch. 1), one or two persons (ch. 47), who carried away the society with them and became leaders of indignation and division (ch. 51). Their distinctive moral feature is pride, exalted by wisdom, which shone in words (ch. 21), but was alien to good deeds (ch. 38). True, at the same time they were, or at least they were joined by people who stood out for their outward purity of life and especially holiness according to the flesh (chap. 48), but they were not imbued with true love, which acts with humility and seeks common good, but not his. Proud of their advantages in understanding and outward purity of life, out of envy and a false understanding of Christian freedom, they rebelled against a certain order of worship and the legally established authority of the church. Having formed a strong party, they extended their insolence to the point of degrading from church posts some respected primates of the Church, appointed by the apostles themselves or their successors. Self-will or anarchy led to that. that the dishonest rebelled against the venerable, the inglorious against the glorious, the foolish against the wise, the young against the elders (ch. 3). The rumor of such disastrous disorder reached Rome, where even among the pagans the name of Christ was subjected to mockery (ch. 47).
The Roman Church, as seen from ch. 1 and 47, without any outward challenge, voluntarily took part in the sad state of the Corinthian Church. Despite the fact that she was oppressed from the outside (ch. 1), she herself was alien to such internal divisions. But the stronger the spirit of ecclesiastical order dominated in her, the more vividly, in the spirit of brotherly love, she must have felt its disorder in the famous Church of Corinth. Her participation in the position of the main Hellenic Church is all the more pure because she rendered it without any claim of power or primacy. As soon as the external disasters that happened to the Roman Church subsided, she hastened to give the Corinthian Church fraternal help with her message, which was sent with three Roman Christians - Claudius Ephebus, Valerius Viton and Fortunatus (ch. 59).
The epistle is written in Greek and consists of 59 chapters. Its content is fully consistent with the circumstances that caused it. After the usual salutation, the epistle begins with a statement of the occasion on which it was written, and with praise of the former manners of the Corinthians, in contrast to their present disorganization (ch. 1-3). At the same time, it presents a beautiful depiction of the life of ancient Christians. “All of you were humble and a stranger to vanity, loved to obey rather than command, and to give than to receive. Satisfied with what God gave you on the path of earthly life, and carefully listening to His words, you kept them in the depths of your heart, and His sufferings were before your eyes. Thus, deep and beautiful peace and an insatiable striving to do good were granted to all: and there was a complete outpouring of the Holy Spirit on all ... Day and night, your feat was the care of all the brotherhood, so that the number of God's chosen ones would be saved complacently and in one mind. Any rebellion and division was disgusting for you.” Then, bearing in mind the reconciliation of the Corinthians and the restoration of ecclesiastical unity, the author prefaces his discussion of the main subject of the epistle with general Christian admonitions, so that the epistle is decomposed into two parts. AT first(4-36 ch.) sets out moral instructions that should have disposed the Corinthians to eliminate the internal foundations of the discord that had occurred among them. The author finds the source of the Corinthian disorder in envy, which has produced so much evil in the world; This is evidenced by the Old Testament righteous (Abel, Jacob, etc.) and the closest ascetics of the faith - the Apostles Peter and Paul, who died as martyrs (Ch. 6). Therefore, he admonishes the Corinthians to repentance and obedience (ch. 7-12), to humility (ch. 13-18), to peace and harmony (ch. 19-21), backing up his exhortations with numerous examples of Old Testament history, the harmony of visible nature and example of Jesus Christ himself. “The scepter of the majesty of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, did not come in a splendor and glory, although he could, but humbly, as the Holy Spirit said about Him (through the prophet Isaiah, 53). Let us revere our Lord Jesus Christ, whose blood is given for us, let us honor our primates, respect the presbyters (ch. 21).” Further, pointing to the benefits of the Creator, he represents the faithfulness of God in the promises and especially dwells on the resurrection of the dead, which is proved by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the omnipotence of God, examples of visible nature and the legend of the Phoenix bird (22-30). So let us seek the blessing of God, and see what paths lead to it (31). The Old Testament righteous were glorified not by themselves and not by their deeds, or by the righteousness of the actions they performed, but by the will of God. So also we, called according to His will in Christ Jesus, are not justified by ourselves and not by our own wisdom, or understanding, or piety, or works, but by faith, through which the Almighty God has justified from time immemorial (ch. 32). What are we to do? Is it possible to lag behind virtue and love? Far from it; on the contrary, let us strive with all our might to do every good deed. May our mind be established in faith in God and let us seek what pleases Him (ch. 33-35). This is the way in which we acquire our salvation - Jesus Christ, the high priest of our victims, our intercessor and helper in our weakness. Through him we look to the heights of the heavens; through him the eyes of our hearts were opened; through him the Lord was pleased that we should taste immortal knowledge. He is the radiance of His majesty, the Son of God at the right hand of the Father (ch. 36).
After general moral exhortations, the author of the Epistle to the Corinthians, by means of the idea that Christians are the soldiers of Christ, finally move on to the particular issue of his epistle - to the Corinthian question of the church structure. This amounts to second part of the message and here, as in his previous reasoning, descending from the general to the particular, the writer first offers a doctrine of the church structure in general (37-44 ch.) and then talks about the affairs of the Corinthian Church (45-57 ch.).
The need for a certain order in the Christian Church is revealed in the epistle by pointing to the discipline of the Roman legions and the structure of the human body, especially to the order of Old Testament worship established by God Himself. “Let's look at the obedience of soldiers to their commanders, at the various ranks of leaders, commanders of thousands, etc., who all carry out the orders of the king and commanders; and from this we can know that neither the great are without the small; neither the small without the great can exist, and only their mutual connection is beneficial. And in the human body, the head and legs mean nothing without each other, and the smallest members are necessary and useful for the whole body, so that it is preserved only by the agreement of all its individual parts (ch. 37). Therefore, let the body of those who believe in Christ be healthy, and each one obey the other, in accordance with the degree to which he is placed by a special gift (carisma) of God, remembering that for everything we must thank God (chap. 38), and not be exalted in their own thoughts (ch. 39), it is given to Christinas to penetrate into the depths of divine knowledge (gnwsiV), i.e., into the spiritual meaning of the Old Testament law, which figuratively pointed to the revelation of the New Testament, - and they must in order do everything that the Lord commanded to do in certain times. And He himself in the Old Testament established certain times and hours for sacrifices and sacred actions (leitourgiai) and also where and through whom these actions should be performed. The high priest is given his ministry (leitourgia), the priests are assigned their own work (topoV), and their positions are assigned to the Levites (diakoniai), the worldly person (laikoV) is bound by prescriptions for the people (ch. 40). Also, sacrifices are not offered everywhere, but only in Jerusalem and there not in every place, but in front of the temple on the altar, after the sacrifice has been examined by the high priest and the above-mentioned ministers. And in Christianity there is the same church order, which originates from God and Christ, and its violation is the more dangerous for Christians, the more knowledge is given to them in comparison with the religion of the Old Testament (ch. 41). The apostles were sent to preach the gospel of Christ, just as Christ himself was sent from God: both were in order by the will of God. As a result of this commission, the apostles, completely convinced through the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ and confirmed in the faith by the Word of God, with the fullness of the Holy Spirit, went to proclaim the coming kingdom of God. Preaching in various countries and cities, they appointed the first-born (from those who were converted), according to a spiritual test, to be bishops and deacons for future believers (42 ch. ); and in this case, they did not introduce any new order, but only fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah (Isaiah 60:17) and followed the Old Testament prototype given by Moses (Numbers 17). Moreover, the apostles, knowing from Christ that there would be contention over the episcopacy, not only appointed the above-mentioned bishops and deacons, but also gave the commandment that when some were asleep, other tested men would take over their ministry. Thus, the apostles established the uninterrupted existence of the rank of primates of the Church, independent of the change of persons. “Therefore, it is unjust to deprive those who were appointed by the apostles themselves or after them by other highly respected men, and who served the flock of Christ irreproachably, with humility, meekly and blamelessly, and, moreover, in the course of a long time received approval from everyone. It will not be a small sin if we deprive those who bring gifts without reproach and holiness of their episcopacy. Blessed are the presbyters who preceded us, who were released from the body after a prolific and perfect life: they have nothing to fear, so that someone could overthrow them from their place. And this really happened in Corinth (ch. 43 and 44).
Turning to the affairs of the Corinthians, the author of the epistle tries to restore in them the love that is the true sign of the Christian life, and with the greatest regret describes the Corinthian schism. “Why do you have strife, anger, disagreements, divisions, war? Do we not have one God and one Christ? Is there not one Spirit of grace poured out on us, and is there not one calling in Christ? - Why do we tear and tear apart the members of Christ, rebel against our own body, and reach such madness that we forget that we are each other's members? (46 ch.) A shameful, and extremely shameful and unworthy deed of Christian life is heard: the firmest and most ancient Church of Corinth, because of one or two people, rebelled against the presbyters ”(47 ch.). This temptation, the rumor of which has penetrated even to non-Christians and given a reason to desecrate the name of the Lord, should be stopped as soon as possible and with tears beg God for forgiveness and restoration of brotherly love. “If anyone is steadfast in faith, or is able to offer the highest knowledge, or is wise in discussing speeches, or is pure in his deeds, much more should he humble himself and seek the common good, and not his own (ch. 48). Whoever has love in Christ also keeps the commandments of Christ. Who can explain the union of God's love? Who can, as it should, express the greatness of His goodness? The height to which love can be raised is unspeakable. Love unites us with God, love covers many sins, love accepts everything, endures everything. There is nothing low or haughty in love, love does not allow any division or revolt, love does everything in harmony. By love, all God's chosen ones have reached perfection; without love there is nothing pleasing to God. The Lord took us in love; according to the love that he had for us, Christ our Lord gave his blood for us, according to the will of God, and his flesh for our flesh, and his life for our souls (ch. 49). So great and wondrous is love, so inexpressible is its perfection! Who can have it if God Himself does not deign it? So, let us beseech Him that we may live in love, blamelessly, without human separation” (ch. 50). Then the perpetrators of the indignation are persuaded to confess their sins and end the strife. (51-53 ch.). “Who among you is noble, merciful, full of love, let him say: if there is rebellion, strife and division because of me, then I will retire, anywhere, and do everything that the people command, if only the flock of Christ was in peace with the set presbyters” (ch. 54–55). “Let us also intercede for those who are in sin, so that meekness and humility would be granted to them, so that they would obey not us, but the will of God” (56 ch. ). After an appeal to those who initiated the indignation, so that they submit to the presbyters, leaving the arrogant audacity of the tongue (chap. 57), the epistle ends with a prayer for the grace of God for all who call on Him, with a request to send them soon with news of the effect of the epistle and a Christian blessing (chap. 59) .
This epistle, as we said, was written on behalf of the Roman Church. Who is the writer of it, it is not visible either in the welcome formula or in other places. That he was one of the primates of the Church can hardly be doubted (see ch. 40, 45). Some (e.g. Tilmon) thought to see in him a Jew by origin, based on the fact that he called Abraham and Jacob our fathers(Ch. 4, 31). But such expressions are quite appropriate in the mouth of a Christian from the Gentiles, when St. Paul calls Abraham the father of believers. Well acquainted with the Old Testament scripture. the author of the epistle is no stranger to knowledge in Greek mythology, as well as in the natural sciences (ch. 6, 20, 25, 55). An indication, for example, of the Roman military discipline and the name of our leaders (ch. 47) gave grounds for the conjecture that he was a Roman.
Ancient tradition, preserved by church writers, unanimously names the author of this epistle as Clement, Bishop of Rome. Egesippus(from the 2nd half of the 2nd century), according to Eusebius (Hist. eccl. III. 16); knew and spoke in his memoirs about the letter of Clement to the Corinthians about their disorder; Unfortunately, Eusebius does not clearly convey his words. For this he quotes an important passage from the letter of Dionysius, Bishop of Corinth, to the Roman Christians (c. 168-176). “Today, he writes, we celebrated the holy day of the Lord and read your epistle, which we will always read for our instruction, as well as first, written by Clement” (Eusebius. Hist. eccl. IV.23). Irenaeus, showing the order of the first Roman bishops, speaks of Clement as follows: “Under this Clement, when no small indignation arose between the Corinthian brethren, the Roman Church sent an excellent scripture to the Corinthians, convincing them to the world and renewing their faith and tradition, which they had recently received from apostles” (Irenaeus. Adv. haeres. III. 3). Clement of Alexandria, calling Clement the Roman apostle, quote from his epistle to the Corinthians excerpts from 18 chapters of it. Origen also repeatedly mentions the Roman Clement and his epistle: his special attention was drawn to a remarkable passage from the Epistle of Clement (chap. 20), which speaks of the worlds beyond the ocean. Eusebius, calling the epistle "great and wonderful", testifies that it was a generally recognized creation of Clement, and in many churches it was read publicly both before and in his time (Hist. eccl. III. 16). Epiphanius of Cyprus (†403) distinguishes between the authentic and “readable letters of Clement in the holy churches” from the inauthentic “travels” of Peter, issued under his name, and cites the fifth chapter from his 1st epistle (Epiph. Adv. haeres. XXVI, 6) . Finally, Jerome (†420) says of Clement that on behalf of the Roman Church he wrote a very useful epistle to the Corinthian Church, which is read publicly in some churches. Without citing other evidence found in Cyril of Jerusalem, in the canons of the Apostles, in Patriarch Photius, and others, we will say that not a single scripture from the post-Apostolic age has been attested by such ancient and numerous testimonies of church writers. Arising in modern times doubts about its authenticity have been thoroughly reflected by scholars of the Catholic as well as the Protestant world. Schwegler's last attempt to refute the origin of the message from Clement of Rome met with a decisive contradiction from Bunsen, Richl Schenkel and others. Impartial, but too cautious Gilgenfeld, due to the contradictory traditions about whose student Clement of Rome was and who was appointed bishop, not daring to attribute the messages to Clement , to whose name it itself has no claim, however, comes to the conclusion that the writer of the epistle belongs to the heads of the Roman Church at the end of the first century. If, therefore, the main essence of the matter is recognized, the origin of the epistle in Rome in the first century of Christianity from one of the representatives of the Church, then it is unfair to go against such early and strong evidence of tradition about Clement as the writer of that epistle. And in learned criticism, as well as in legal court, summum jus summa injuria.
The name of Clement of Rome belongs to the most glorious and respected names of Christian antiquity. This is proved by the many writings published under his name. In addition to the first epistle to the Corinthians and an incomplete work called the second epistle, he was credited with an exposition of the rules of St. apostles and apostolic decrees. Five letters appeared with his name in false Isidore decretals. Epiphanius and Jerome erected epistles to him about virginity, recently found and published. All this testifies to the actual authorship of Clement of Rome and his important historical significance. And it is remarkable that his name has become, as it were, a collective name for writings that mainly relate to church organization and discipline. In addition, the personality of Clement was a favorite subject of the apocryphal literature of the first centuries of Christianity, the monuments of which remain for us the so-called "Meetings (Recognitiones)" and the false Clementine "Conversations". Unfortunately, history has preserved very meager and vague news about Clement. And in the legends of the Apocrypha we have named, fiction dominates to such an extent that it is difficult and almost impossible to penetrate into the historical circumstances of the life of the real Clement. In them, he appears as a Roman from the royal family, who received an excellent education in the sciences, the preaching of St. Peter converted to Christianity, his constant companion, whom, finally, before his death in Rome, Peter makes his successor in the rank of bishop of Rome. But, according to scientists, the features of the consul Flavius Clement, whom his relative emperor Domitian executed (96) for his conversion to Christianity, are mixed here with the features of Clement, the bishop of Rome, who is issued only for a student Peter. Meanwhile, Origen and Eusebius (Hist. eccl. III. 4, 15) recognize Clement as an employee of the Apostle Paul, about whom, together with others, their names are written in animal books, the apostle mentions in his letter to the Philippians (Philippians 4:3). Irenaeus says about Clement that he saw the blessed apostles (of course, Peter and Paul, who founded the Roman Church) and dealt with them, listened to their preaching, and their tradition was before his eyes.
There is no doubt that Clement was a bishop of Rome. But in various traditions preserved in the writings of church writers and other written monuments of antiquity, hesitation and uncertainty are found in showing the place he occupied in the succession of the most ancient bishops of Rome. The false Clementine "Conversations" and "Meetings" present Clement as the immediate successor of St. Peter, appointed Bishop of Rome by him. Tertullian points to Clement as the bishop of Rome appointed by Peter (Clementem a Petro ordinatum). According to Jerome, very many of the Latins revered Clement as the second bishop of Rome after ap. Peter. According to others, Bishop Linus preceded him, and Irenaeus, according to whom Eusebius and Jerome speak in his catalog of church writers, testifies that after Linus, Anaclet (or Cletus) was still bishop, after whom Clement entered into government of the church. As a result of such a disagreement of traditions, even the ancients made attempts to reconcile them. So Rufinus, in the preface to his Latin translation of the Meeting, expresses the following consideration: “Linus and Cletus were bishops in Rome, although before Clement, but during the life of Peter, so that they performed the work of episcopacy, and he himself performed the office of apostleship, as this he did in Caesarea, where he himself was and, however, had the bishop Zacchaeus appointed by him; thus, both may seem fair: both the fact that they (Lin and Clet) are considered bishops before Clement, and the fact that Clement received the bishopric after the death of Peter. Epiphanius of Cyprus thinks that Clement, appointed by Peter, for the sake of peace ceded the bishopric to Linus, followed by Cletus, and after their death Clement entered the bishopric. In the decrees of the apostles (VII, 4) it is said on behalf of Peter that Lin was left the first bishop from ap. Paul, and after the death of Lin was ordained ap. Peter Clement.
It is difficult at present to ascertain decisively any definite order of the first Roman bishops, but the tradition of Irenaeus seems more probable; according to him, the historical testimony of Eusebius, who used the notes of Egesippus, who, while in Rome, compiled a list of the succession of bishops to Aniceta (Eusebius. Hist. eccl. IV. 22). If Clement really occupied the first place, as the immediate successor of Peter, it would be inexplicable how these little-known names of Linus and Anacleta could fall into the ranks of his predecessors; meanwhile, it would be easy to understand how Clement, a widely known and respected disciple of the apostles, in the course of time could supplant the names of those bishops in the Latin tradition. In Rome, where thousands of Jews lived, a significant part of the Church was Judeo-Christians, who illegally appropriated the name of the great apostle Peter, as the head of their party. The first primates of the Roman Church could not have thought of a separation between Peter and the apostle of the tongues, Paul: the agreement of doctrine and the common activity and sufferings of Peter and Paul in Rome affirmed them in inseparable remembrance and respect for both chief apostles. But among the Roman believers there were quite a few Judeo-Christians who were exclusively devoted to St. Peter with disdain and even a clear dislike for the Apostle of tongues. This party, as can be seen from the pseudo-Clementine “Conversations” and “Meetings”, wanted to put the glorious Clement in the closest direct connection with the Apostle. Peter both in relation to the doctrine and to the succession of the episcopal dignity. In this regard, later, under the influence of the historical memories of pagan Rome, little by little the Roman Catholic idea of the bishop of Rome and the tradition of the administration of St. Peter by the Roman Church as the first bishop, who was allegedly succeeded directly by Clement.
Eusebius says that Clement's episcopal ministry lasted 9 years from AD 92 to 101. But history does not report anything reliable about his activities at this time, except for participation in the affairs of the Corinthian Church. Irenaeus and Eusebius do not talk about the martyrdom of Clement, but Rufinus and Pope Zosimus call him a martyr, and in later times there were acts of his martyrdom, from which it is clear that Clement, who was exiled under the emperor Trajan for the name of Christ to Tauric Chersonesus, turned preaching and miracles many pagans to Christ, and for that, at the command of the emperor, he was thrown into the sea with a stone around his neck.
It is not difficult to determine the time of writing the Clementine Epistle if we pay attention to the indications contained in it in connection with external historical evidence. Quite some time had already passed after the founding of the Corinthian Church, so that the author could call it the ancient Church, and the first letter of Paul to the Corinthians, regarding their divisions, can be attributed to the beginning of the gospel preaching (chap. 47). Not only did the two great apostles Peter and Paul die (chap. 5), but also some who were placed by them in the service of the Church; and of the primates of the Church still living, some, already appointed as apostolic successors, were in their ministry for a long time (chap. 44). Such signs indicate that the epistle of Clement was written long after Nero's persecution, during which the apostles Peter and Paul suffered (64 or 67); and if the author calls them closest ascetics faith and patience, we must understand this in relation to ancient examples borrowed from Old Testament history (ch. 5). On the other hand, the author in the 1st ch. speaks of the sudden and successive calamities of the Roman Church. Most scholars attribute this circumstance to the reign of Domitian (81-96), during which oppression and execution again befell Christians, although this persecution was inferior in its cruelty to Nero's. This is also consistent with the testimony of Eusebius cited above about the time of the bishopric of Clement. According to others, the epistle of Clement was written before the destruction of the Jerusalem temple (70), about 68 years. Its main foundation is formed by the words of the epistle (ch. 40 and 41), in which the temple of Jerusalem and the divine services established in it are presented as if they exist. “Not everywhere, writes Clement, are sacrifices made ... but only in Jerusalem, and there not in every place, but in front of the temple on the altar, after the sacrifice being offered will be examined by the high priest and the ministers mentioned above.” But from such a mode of expression it is impossible to conclude about the external existence of Jewish worship in Jerusalem. Clement points to Jewish worship in general in order to apply the commandment of God expressed in it about church order to the life of the Christian Church. This commandment mattered even though the outer temple had long since been destroyed, just as the election of the Israelite people (ch. 29) passed to the Christian people. A similar way of expression is found in Josephus Flavius, who spoke after the destruction of Jerusalem about the institutions of the Old Testament worship of God, as still existing, of course, in relation to the unchanging law, as well as among Christian writers in the epistle to Diognet and in Justin the Martyr. Thus, the writing of the Clementine Epistle can be more thoroughly believed in the reign of Domitian, no later than 96 AD.
From the above testimonies about the author of the epistle, it is clear what fame and respect it enjoyed in Christian antiquity. The very first traces of his fame can be found in the letter of the apostolic husband (II century) Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna, to the Philippians: it so often coincides with the Clement Epistle both in thought and in expression that Gallandi and Hefele most likely assume that Polycarp had it and used it. In addition, in many churches from an early time it was read at public meetings of Christians.
This prominence of Clement's epistle continued until the sixth century. But later, in the troubled times of the Middle Ages, it was almost lost. From the time of Patriarch Photius until the 17th century, none of the learned theologians found it in ancient book depositories, and therefore it was considered lost. The first to find this precious monument of Christian antiquity was Patricius Junius, the librarian of the English king Charles I. Cyril Lucaris, the patriarch famous for learning, first of Alexandria, and then of Constantinople, brought with him from Alexandria a rich collection of books, and among them a very ancient code of the Bible, called now Alexandrian, and attributed by Tischendorf to the middle of the 5th century. Lucaris sent this manuscript as a gift (1628) to the King of England. At the end of it, after the Apocalypse, was the first epistle to the Corinthians and a fragment of the so-called second epistle of Clement; then came the book of psalms. Unfortunately, parchment sheets suffered a lot from moths and time: at the end of the message, one large sheet was missing, and in the text itself there was either no beginning or end of some words, and sometimes even whole words. The learned librarian Junius, with the greatest diligence, took up the jewel he had found; he parsed the text of the epistle, filled in the missing syllables and words, and published with notes and a Latin translation the first epistle, together with a fragment of the second, at Oxford (1633). Cotelier, in his edition with a new Latin translation, divided the text of the epistles into chapters (1672). Wotton reviewed the manuscript again, and, correcting the shortcomings of Juniev's reading, published the epistles in Cambridge, 1718. Finally, the newly revised and corrected epistles of Clement appeared in the edition of the writings of the apostolic men Jacobson, who was mainly followed by Hefele and Dressel.
First Epistle of Clement of Rome to the Corinthians
Chapter I
Chapter XIII
Therefore let us be humble, brethren, laying aside all arrogance, pride, foolishness and anger, and let us do as it is written. For the Holy Spirit says: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, neither the mighty in his strength, nor the rich in his riches, but he who boasts, let him boast in the Lord, seeking Him, and doing justice and righteousness” (Jer. 9:22-23). Let us especially remember the words of the Lord Jesus, which He spoke, teaching meekness and generosity. He said thus: “have mercy, that you may have mercy; let go, that you may be released; as you do, so you will be done; as you give, so shall it be given to you; as you judge, so you will be judged; as you condescend, so they will condescend to you; With what measure you use, it will be measured to you.” By this commandment and these promptings let us strengthen ourselves to walk in humility, obeying His holy precepts. For the holy word says: “Whomever I look upon, only the meek and the quiet one, who trembles at My words” (Isaiah 16:2).
Chapter XIV
Therefore, it is a righteous and holy thing, brethren, to obey God rather than to follow those who, in arrogance and arrogance, have become leaders of contemptible envy. For not a small harm, but on the contrary, we will be exposed to great danger if we recklessly give ourselves to the will of those people who incite us to discord and rebellion in order to lead us away from virtue. Let us be indulgent to each other, as He who created us is merciful and good; for it is written, “The good shall be the inhabitants of the earth, and the innocent shall remain upon it; but the lawless will be cut off from it” (Prov. 2:21-22). And again he says Scripture: “I saw the wicked one exalted and exalted like the cedars of Lebanon; and I passed by, and behold, he was no more, and I looked for his place, and did not find it. Keep your innocence and keep uprightness, because good consequences await a peaceful person ”(Ps. 36:35-37).
Chapter XV
Let us therefore join those who keep peace with piety, and not those who hypocritically desire peace; for it is said somewhere: these people honor me with their lips, but their heart is far from me (Is.29:13; Mk.7:6; Mt.15:8). And in another place: “with their mouth they blessed, but with their heart they cursed” (Ps. 61:5). And it says again: They loved Him with their mouth, and with their tongue they lied to Him; but their heart was not right with him; and they were not faithful in his covenant (Ps. 78:36-37). Let the flattering lips be dumb (Ps. 30:19), and let the Lord cut off the flattering lips and the eloquent tongue, those who say: Let us exalt our tongue, our mouth is with us: who is our Lord? For the calamity of the poor, and the sighing of the needy, now I will arise, says the Lord: I will serve them as salvation, and I will deal with them honestly (Ps. 11: 4–6).
Chapter XVI
For Christ belongs to the humble, and not to those who exalt themselves over His flock. The rod of the majesty of God, our Lord Jesus Christ did not come in a splendor of splendor and arrogance, although he could, but humbly, as the Holy Spirit said about Him. For He says: “Lord, who has believed our ears? and to whom has the hand of the Lord been revealed? We proclaimed before Him; He is like a little boy, like a root in a thirsty land - he has neither appearance nor glory. And we saw Him, and He had neither form nor beauty; but His appearance is dishonorable, more humiliated than the appearance of men; He is a man in an ulcer and suffering, able to bear the disease; because his face was turned away, it was reviled and despised. He bears our sins and suffers for us; but we thought that He was righteously subject to suffering, and plague, and torment; but He was wounded for our sins and tormented for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace is upon him, through his wound we are healed. We are all lost like sheep; any man wandered in his way, and the Lord betrayed him for our sins. And He, being tormented, does not open His mouth: as a sheep was led to the slaughter, and like a dumb lamb before its shearers, so He does not open His mouth. For His humility, judgment was removed from Him. Who will tell His generation when His life is taken from the earth? For the iniquity of my people He goes to death. And because I will have mercy on the wicked for His tomb, and the rich for His death; for he did no iniquity, and no deceit was found in his mouth. And the Lord is pleased to cleanse Him from the ulcer; if you give sacrifice about sin, then your soul will see a seed that lasts. And the Lord wants to save Him from the suffering of His soul, to show Him light and to form with understanding, and to justify the righteous one, who has served many in a beneficial way; and He will bear their sins. Therefore, He will rule over many and divide the spoils of the strong, because His soul was delivered to death and was numbered among the wicked; and he blotted out the sins of many, and was delivered over for their iniquities” (Isaiah 53:1ff.). [He] says: “I am a worm, not a man, a reproach to men and a humiliation of people, All who see Me mocked Me, spoke with their lips and nodded their heads, saying: “He trusted in the Lord, let him deliver Him and keep Him, because He wills to Him” (Ps. 21:7–9; Heb. 11:37). Beloved, see what a model has been given to us: for if the Lord has so humbled Himself, then what should we do, who through Him have come under the yoke of His grace?
Chapter XVII
Let us also imitate those who wandered about in goat and sheep skins, preaching about the coming of Christ: we mean the prophets Elijah, Elisha and Ezekiel, also those who received a beautiful testimony in Scripture. Abraham received a great testimony, and is called a friend of God: but, looking at the glory of God, he says with humility: I am earth and ashes (Gen. 18:27). Further, it is written about Job as follows: Job was righteous and blameless, true and pious, and shunned all evil (Job 1:1). But he, judging himself, said: no one is clean from filthiness, even if his life be one day (Job 14:4-5). Moses is called faithful in all his house, and God, through his ministry, executed judgment on Egypt through torment and executions: but he, so glorified, did not magnify himself, but when the Divine word came to him from the bush, he said: who am I, what are you are you sending me? I am a stutterer and tongue-tied (Ex. 3:11; 4:10). And again he says: I am steam from the boiler.
Chapter XVIII
What can we say about the glorified David, about whom God said: “I found a man after my own heart, David the son of Jesse, I anointed him with eternal mercy” (Ps. 89:21; Acts 13:22)? But he also says to God: have mercy on me, O God, according to Thy great mercy, and according to the multitude of Thy mercies, cleanse my iniquity. Even more - wash me from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin, for I know my iniquity and my sin is always before me. I have sinned against You alone and done evil before You, so that You would be justified in Your words and overcome when they judge You. For in iniquity I was conceived, and in sins my mother bore me. You have loved the truth: the hidden secrets of Your wisdom You have revealed to me. Sprinkle me with hyssop and I will be clean; wash me and I will be whiter than snow. Give joy and gladness to my hearing: and my broken bones will rejoice. Turn your face away from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit in my womb. Cast me not away from Your presence, and take not Your Holy Spirit from me. Give me the joy of salvation. Yours, and strengthen me with a sovereign spirit. I will teach sinners Your ways, and the wicked will turn to You. Deliver me from the shedding of blood, O God, God of my salvation. My tongue will sing of Your righteousness. Lord, open my mouth, and my mouth will proclaim your praise. If you wished different sacrifices I would make; but burnt offerings are not pleasing to you. Sacrifice to God is a broken spirit; a contrite and humble heart God will not despise (Ps. 50:3-19).
Chapter XIX
The humility and obedient obedience of these husbands who have received such a glorious testimony from God Himself, made better not only us [i.e. e. Christians], but also former generations, namely those who, with fear and sincerity, accepted His words. So, having before us so many great and glorious deeds, let us turn to the goal of the world, indicated to us from the beginning, and looking to the Father and Creator of the whole world, let us delve into His majestic and excellent gifts of the world and His good deeds. Let us look at Him with the mind and spiritual eyes, let us look at the longsuffering of His will, and let us think how meek He is to all His creation.
Chapter XX
The heavens, moving at His command, obey Him in the world: both day and night make their course, not hindering each other. The sun and the faces of the stars, at His command, according to, without the slightest deviation, penetrate the paths assigned to them. The fruitful land, according to His will, at certain times produces abundant food for people, beasts, and all animals that are on it, without slowing down or changing anything that was prescribed for them. The unsearchable and incomprehensible regions of the abyss and the underworld are kept by the same decrees. The boundless sea, united in great masses of water according to His arrangement, does not go beyond the barriers set for it, but does as He commanded. For He said, hitherto you shall reach, and your waves shall be broken in you (Job 37:11). The ocean, which is impassable for people, and the worlds behind it, are governed by the same commands of the Lord. The seasons - spring, summer, autumn and winter are peacefully replaced by one another. Certain winds, each in its own time, perform their service without hindrance. Inexhaustible springs, created for enjoyment and health, constantly deliver their moisture to people, which is necessary for their life. Finally, the smallest animals peacefully and in harmony form cohabitation among themselves. All this was commanded to be in harmony and peace by the great Creator and Master of everything, Who does good to everyone, and especially to us, who resorted to His mercy through our Lord Jesus Christ, to Whom be glory and majesty forever and ever. Amen.
Chapter XXI
Beware, beloved, that so many of His benefits do not turn into condemnation for all of us, if we, living worthy of Him, do not with one accord do what is good and pleasing to Him. For it is said somewhere: The Spirit of the Lord is a lamp that searches the secrets of the womb (Prov. 20:27). Let us consider how close He is to us, and that not one of our thoughts or meetings that we have is closed from Him. Therefore, we must not deviate from His will: it is better for us to resist the foolish and senseless, those who exalt and boast in the splendor of their words to people rather than to God. Let us revere the Lord Jesus Christ, whose blood is given for us, let us honor our primates, respect the presbyters, raise young men in the fear of God, direct our wives to goodness, so that they are distinguished by the gracious disposition of chastity, show their pure disposition towards meekness, reveal the modesty of their tongue. silence, they showed their love not according to their inclinations, but equal to all those who piously fear God. Let your children receive a Christian education; let them learn how strong humility is before God, what pure love means before God, how wonderful and great the fear of God is and how saving it is for all who walk holy in it with a pure mind. For He is the tester of thoughts and desires our: His breath is in us, and when he desires, he will take him.
Chapter XXII
All this is confirmed by the Christian faith. For Christ Himself, through the Holy Spirit, thus calls to us: Come, children, listen to Me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. Who is a person who wants life, who loves to see good days? Keep your tongue from evil, and your mouth from speaking deceit. Turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it. Eyes of the Lord converted on the righteous, and his ears to their prayer: but on those who make the face of the Lord evil draws in order to destroy their memory from the earth. The righteous man called, and the Lord heard him, and delivered him from all his sorrows (Ps. 33:11–18). Many scourges to the sinner: but those who trust in the Lord will be surrounded by mercy His(Ps. 31:10).
Chapter XXIII
The merciful and beneficent Father in everything is merciful to those who fear Him, and He willingly and kindly distributes His gifts to those who approach Him with a pure disposition. Therefore, let us not doubt, and let not our souls despair of His excellent and glorious gifts: let it be far from us what is said in Scripture, where it says: Unfortunate are the two-minded, wavering in soul and saying: This we heard also in the time of our fathers, and behold, we have grown old, but nothing like this has happened to us. Unreasonable! compare yourself to a tree, take as an example vine: first it loses a leaf, then an offspring is formed, then a leaf, then a flower, and after that an unripe, finally a ripe grape. See how in a short time the tree fruit reaches maturity. Soon, truly and suddenly, the will of the Lord will be done according to the testimony of the Scripture itself: it will come soon, and will not delay, and suddenly the Lord and the Holy One, whom you are waiting for, will come to the temple (Hab. 2:3; Mal. 3: 1; Heb. 10: 37).
Chapter XXIV
Consider, beloved, how the Lord constantly shows us the future resurrection, which the Lord Jesus Christ made the firstfruits of by raising Him from the dead. Let's look, beloved, at the resurrection taking place at all times. Day and night represent the resurrection to us: the night goes to sleep, the day rises; the day passes, the night comes. Let's see the fruits earthly how seeds are sown. A sower came out, threw them into the ground, and the thrown seeds, which fell dry and bare to the ground, rotted: but after this destruction, the great power of the Providence of the Lord resurrects them, and from one grain brings back many and brings forth fruit (1 Cor. 15:35-38).
Chapter XXV
Let us look at an extraordinary sign that happens in the eastern countries, that is, near Arabia. There is there a bird called the Phoenix. She is born only one and lives for five hundred years. Approaching her mortal destruction, she makes a nest out of Lebanon, myrrh and other fragrances, into which, when her time is fulfilled, she enters and dies. A worm is born from a rotting body, which, feeding on the moisture of a dead animal, fledges; then, having come to the fortress, he takes the nest in which the bones of his ancestor lie, and with this burden he makes his way from Arabia to Egypt, to city, called Iliopolis, and arriving in the daytime, in the sight of everyone, he puts it on the altar of the sun, and thus departs back. The priests examine the chronicles and find that this bird was five hundred years old.
Chapter XXVI
So, shall we consider it great and amazing if the Creator of all resurrects those who, in the hope of good faith, have served Him faithfully, when He reveals to us His great promise through the bird? For it is said somewhere: and You will raise me up and I will praise You (Ps. 27:7). And one more thing: I fell asleep, and slept, but rose up because you are with me (Ps.3:6). Similarly, Job says: and You will raise up this my flesh, which endures all this (Wisdom 12:12; 11:22).
Chapter XXVII
In this hope, may our souls cling to Him who is faithful in promises and righteous in judgments. Their. He who commanded not to lie, much less he himself will not lie; for nothing is impossible for God: it is only impossible to lie. Therefore, let His faith be kindled in us, and let us think that everything is close to Him. By the word of His majesty He created everything, but by the word He can destroy it. “Who will say to Him: why did he do it? or whoever resists the might of His might” (Job 19:25–26). When He pleases, He will do everything, and nothing that He has determined will remain unfulfilled. Everything is before Him, and nothing is hidden from His counsel. If the heavens announce the glory of God, then the firmament announces the work of His hands; day by day he vomits the word, and the night of the night proclaims knowledge. And there are no words, no speeches, the sounds of which would not be heard (Ps. 18:2-4).
Chapter XXVIII
So if God sees and hears everything, then let us fear Him, and let us leave unclean strivings for evil deeds in order to be covered by His mercy from future judgments. For where can any of us flee from His mighty hand? What world will accept the one who fled from Him? For Scripture says nowhere: “Where shall I go, and where shall I hide myself from Your face? if I ascend to heaven, you are there; if I go to the ends of the earth, and there is thy right hand; if I dwell in the abyss, and your Spirit is there” (Ps. 139:7–10). Where, then, can anyone go, or where can he flee from Him Who comprehends everything?
Chapter XXIX
So, let us approach Him in holiness of soul, raising pure and undefiled hands to Him, and loving our meek, merciful Father, Who has chosen us as His own; for thus it is written: “When the Most High divided the nations, when He scattered the sons of Adam, He set the borders of the nations according to the number of the angels of God: and His people Jacob became part of the Lord, the boundary of His inheritance Israel” (Deut. 38: 8–9). And in another place it says: “Behold, the Lord chooses for Himself a people from among the nations, as a man takes the firstfruits from his threshing floor, and from that people the holy of holies will come.”
Chapter XXX
Let us therefore, being the lot of the Holy One, do everything that pertains to holiness, wretched slander, unclean and vicious relationships, drunkenness, passion for innovation, low lusts, abominable adultery and vile pride. For it is said: God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble (Prov. 41:34; James 4:6; 1 Pet. 5:5). Let us therefore join those to whom God has given grace. Let us put on like-mindedness, be humble, temperate, far from all slander and slander, justifying ourselves by deeds, and not by words. For it is said: He who speaks much must also listen in his turn; Or does he who speaks think he is righteous? Blessed is he who is born of a woman, short-lived. Do not be verbose (Job. 11:2-3), let our praise be with God, and not from ourselves; God hates those who praise themselves. Let the testimony of our good behavior be given from others, as it was given to our righteous fathers. Insolence, arrogance and insolence are characteristic of the damned from God; temperance, humility and meekness yes they will those blessed by God.
Chapter XXXI
So, let us seek His blessing, and see what paths lead to blessing. Let's remember what happened from the beginning. Why was our father Abraham blessed? Is it not for the fact that according to his faith he did justice and truth? Isaac with confidence and knowing the future willingly became a victim. Jacob with humility left his land because of his brother, went to Laban and served; and the twelve tribes of Israel were given to him.
Chapter XXXII
If anyone considers everything in detail, then he will know the greatness of the gifts given from God. From Jacob all the priests and Levites who serve at the altar of God. From him is the Lord Jesus according to the flesh: from him are kings, rulers, leaders through Judas; and his other tribes in no small glory, as God promised: “Your seed will be like the stars of heaven” (Gen. 22:17; 28:4). And all of them were glorified and exalted not by themselves, and not by their deeds, and not by the rightness of the actions committed by them, but by the will of God. So also we, being called according to His will in Christ Jesus, are not justified by ourselves, and not by our own wisdom, or by reason, or by piety, or by the works we do in holiness of heart, but by means of faith, by which the Almighty God has justified all from time immemorial. To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen.
Chapter XXXIII
So what shall we do, brethren? Should we lag behind virtue and love? Far from it, God forbid that this should happen to us; on the contrary, with all our effort and readiness, let us hasten to do every good deed. For the Creator Himself and Lord of all rejoices in His works. He established the heavens with His supreme power and adorned them with His incomprehensible wisdom; He separated the earth from the waters surrounding it, and established His will on a solid foundation, and by His authority commanded that animals walk on it. He also created the sea and the animals in it, and protected it with His might. Above all this, with holy and pure hands, He formed the most excellent and most excellent in understanding creature, man, the mark of His image. For thus says God: “Let us make man in our image and after our likeness. And God created man, male and female he created them” (Gen. 1:26-27). Having done all this, He approved and blessed and said: grow and multiply. Let us also know that all the righteous have been adorned with good deeds; and the Lord Himself rejoiced, having adorned Himself with works. Having such an example, let us not lazily follow His will, and with all our might we will do the work of righteousness.
Chapter XXXIV
A good worker boldly receives bread for his work; the lazy and careless one does not even dare to look at the one who gave him a job. And we must be zealous in doing good, for everything is from Him. For he foretells us Scripture: “Behold the Lord, and His reward is before Him, to give to each according to his work” (Is.40:10; 62:11; Apoc.22:12). Thus He exhorts us to turn to Him with all our heart, and not to be careless and negligent in any good deed; in him may our praise and hope be; Let us submit to His will. Let us think of all the multitude of His angels as they stand before Him do His will. For the Scripture says: “them we stood before Him, and thousands of thousands served Him (Dan. 7:10), and cried out: Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of Hosts; all creation is full of his glory” (Isaiah 6:3). So we, in a united assembly, with one spirit, as if from the same mouth, will cry out to Him unceasingly, so that we may become participants in His great and glorious promises. For says Scripture: Eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and it has not entered into the heart of man what He has prepared for those who trust in Him.
Chapter XXXV
How blessed and marvelous are the gifts of God, beloved, Life in immortality, radiance in righteousness, truth in freedom, faith in hope, temperance in holiness: all this is within our grasp. What the gifts still being prepared for those who are waiting? The Creator and Father of the ages, the All-Holy One, He Himself knows their greatness and beauty. Therefore, let us make every effort to be among those who trust in Him, in order to participate in the promised gifts. How will it be, beloved? If our mind is established in faith in God; if we seek what pleases and pleases Him; if we do that; that in accordance with His holy will, and walk the path of truth, rejecting from ourselves all unrighteousness and lawlessness, covetousness, strife, malevolence and deceit, slander and slander, impiety, pride and majesty, vanity and inhospitality. For those who do this are hateful to God, and not only those who do this, but also those who approve of it. Scripture says: “God said to the sinner: Why do you proclaim My commandments and accept My covenant with your mouth, but you hate discipline and reject My words? If you saw the aunt, then you fled with him, and took part with the adulterer. Your mouth was filled with malice, and your tongue wove deceptions. Sitting in court, you slandered your brother and built fores for your mother's son. You did it and I was silent; you, the lawless one, thought that I would be like you. But I will rebuke you and present you before your face. Understand, then, you who forget God, lest you be snatched away like a lion, and there will be no one to deliver you. The sacrifice of praise will glorify Me, and there is the way in which I will show him the salvation of God” (Ps. 49:16–23).
Chapter XXXVI
This is the way, beloved, by which we obtain our salvation, Jesus Christ, the High Priest of our offerings, our intercessor and helper in our weakness. Through him we look to the heights of the heavens; through Him, as if in a mirror we see a clean and bright face God through Him the eyes of our hearts were opened, through Him our senseless and darkened mind arises into His wonderful light; through him the Lord desired that we should taste immortal knowledge. He, being the radiance of His majesty, is as much more excellent than the angels, as he inherited the most glorious name before them (Heb. 1:3-4). For thus it is written: “He makes his angels spirits and his servants flames of fire” (Ps. 104:4; Heb. 1:7). The Lord said this about His Son: “You are My Son, today I have begotten You, ask of Me and I will give You the nations for Your inheritance, and the ends of the earth for Your possession” (Ps.2:7-8; Heb.1:5 ). And he also says to Him: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool” (Ps. 109:1; Heb. 1:13). Who are the enemies? Vicious, opposing the will of God.
Chapter XXXVII
So brothers! Let us fight with all our strength under His holy commandments. Imagine militant under superiors our leaders; how harmoniously, how diligently, how obediently they carry out orders. Not all eparchs, not all commanders of a thousand, or commanders of hundreds, or commanders of fifty, and so on, but each in his rank carries out the orders of the king and commanders. Neither the great without the small nor the small without the great can exist. All of them seem to be connected together, and this is beneficial. Let's take our body: a head without legs means nothing, just like legs without a head, and the smallest members in our body are necessary and useful for the whole body; they all agree, and by harmonious submission serve for the health of the whole body.
Chapter XXXVIII
So let our whole body be healthy in Jesus Christ, and each one obey his neighbor in accordance with the degree at which he is placed by His gift. The strong do not despise the weak, and the weak honor the strong; the rich give to the poor, and the poor give thanks to God that He gave him, through whom his poverty can be filled. Wise one, show your wisdom not in words, but in good deeds. One who is humble, do not bear witness for yourself, but let another bear witness for you. Pure in the flesh ... and do not boast, knowing that there is another who grants him temperance. Let us think, brothers, from what substance we originated, and how we entered the world, as if from the tomb and darkness. Our Creator and Creator brought us into His world, having prepared His blessings for us before our birth. So, having everything from Him, we should thank Him for everything. To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen.
Chapter XXXIX
Crazy, senseless, stupid and ignorant laugh and swear for that over us, desiring to exalt themselves in their own thoughts. But what can a mortal, or what kind of fortress is in the earthly? for it is written: “There was no form before my eyes; but i heard only quiet breath and voice: what then? Will a man be pure before the Lord, or undefiled in his deeds, if He does not rely on His servants and sees shortcomings in His angels (Job 4:16-18)? the sky is unclean before Him (Job 15:15); much less living in mortal temples, of which we ourselves, educated from the same rubbish. As if the moth had eaten them, and from morning to evening they were no more: from the fact that they could not help themselves, they died. He blew on them and perished because they had no wisdom (Job 4:19-21). Call, if anyone hears you, or if you see any of the holy angels. Anger destroys the foolish, and zeal kills the foolish. I saw mad ones taking root, but their dwelling was immediately destroyed. Let their sons be far from salvation, and let them be despised at lesser doors, and there will be no one to save them. For what they have gathered, the righteous will eat, but they themselves will not be taken away from evil” (Job 5:1-5).
Chapter XL
Being convinced of this, and penetrating into the depths of divine knowledge, we must do in order all that the Lord has commanded to be done at certain times. He commanded that sacrifices and sacred acts should not be performed randomly and without order, but at certain times and hours. Also, where and through whom this should be done, He Himself determined by His highest will, that everything be done holy and pleasing, and be pleasing to His will. Therefore, pleasing to Him and blessed are those who, at the appointed times, offer their sacrifices; for in following the commandments of the Lord they do not err. The high priest is given his office, the priests are assigned their work, and the Levites are assigned their offices; the man of the world is bound by ordinances for the people.
Chapter XLI
Each of you, brethren, give thanks to God for your own position, keeping a good conscience and reverently not transgressing a certain rule of your ministry. Not everywhere, brothers, are continuous sacrifices, or votive offerings, or sin offerings, and guilt offerings, but only in Jerusalem, and there the offering is not made in every place, but in front of the temple on the altar, after the sacrifice has been examined by the high priest and the above-mentioned servants. Those who do anything contrary to His will are punished by death. You see, brethren, the more knowledge we have been granted, the more we are in danger.
Chapter XLII
The apostles were sent to preach the gospel to us from the Lord Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ from God. Christ was sent from God, and the apostles from Christ; both were in order by the will of God. So accepting the command, apostles completely convinced through the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ and confirmed in the faith by the word of God, with the fullness of the Holy Spirit, went to proclaim the coming kingdom of God. preaching on various countries and cities, they are the firstborn of believers, according to a spiritual test, they were appointed bishops and deacons for future believers. And this is not a new establishment; for centuries before it was written about bishops and deacons. Thus says Scripture: “I will appoint their bishops in righteousness, and their deacons in faith” (Is. 60:17).
Chapter XLIII
And why marvel, if those to whom in Christ this work would have been entrusted from God, supplied the aforementioned ministers? Blessed Moses, “the entrusted servant in the whole house of God” (Heb. 3:2,5; Num. 12:17), depicted everything commanded to Him in the sacred books; other prophets followed him, confirming his legitimization by their testimony. When a strife arose over the priesthood, and the tribes Israeli disagreed about which of them should be decorated with this glorious name, then Moses commanded the twelve chiefs of the tribes to bring to him rods on which was written the name of each tribe; And he took them, bound them, sealed them with rings for the rulers of the tribes, and laid them in the tabernacle of witness at the table of the Lord. And having closed the tabernacle, he sealed the locks as well as the rods, and said to them: brothers, whose knee the rod blooms, then God has chosen to the priesthood and serve Himself. The next day in the morning he summoned all Israel, six hundred thousand people, and showed their seals to the rulers of the tribes, and opened the tabernacle of testament and brought out the rods: and it turned out that the rod of Aaron not only blossomed, but even had fruit on itself. Do you think, beloved, did Moses not know beforehand what it would be? Of course he knew, but he did so so that there would be no indignation in Israel, to glorify the name of “the true and only God” (John 17:3.). To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen.
Chapter XLIV
And our apostles knew through our Lord Jesus Christ that there would be contention about episcopal dignity. For this very reason, having received perfect foreknowledge, they set the aforementioned ministers, and then they added a law, so that when they rest, other tried men would take over their ministry. So, we consider it unjust to deprive those who were appointed by the apostles themselves or after them by other revered men, with the consent of the whole Church, and served the flock of Christ irreproachably, with humility, meekly and blamelessly, and, moreover, for a long time received approval from everyone. And it will be no small sin on us if we deprive those who bring gifts without reproach and holiness of their episcopacy. Blessed are the presbyters who preceded us, who were destroyed from the body after a fruitful and perfect life: they have nothing to fear, so that someone could overthrow them from their place. For we see that you have deprived some of those who pass their lives commendably from the service they pass without reproach.
Chapter XLV
You, brethren, are quarrelsome and zealous in that which has nothing to do with salvation. Look into the Scriptures, these are the true words of the Holy Spirit. Note that there is nothing unjust and perverse written in them. You will not find righteous people being cast down by holy people. The righteous were persecuted, but from the lawless; were put into prison, but from the wicked; were stoned by evildoers; were killed by the vicious, carried away by criminal envy. They endured all these sufferings with glory. For what shall we say, brothers? Was Daniel thrown into the lions' den by God-fearing people (Dan. 6:16)? Ananias, Azariah and Misail from the worshipers of the magnificent and glorious service of the Almighty were cast into a furnace of fire (Dan. 3:20)? Far from it. Who did it? The vicious people, full of all kinds of evil, reached such a frenzy that they were tortured by the holy and immaculate will of those who served God: they did not know that the Most High is the intercessor and protector of those who with a clear conscience honor His all-perfect name. To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen. And they, enduring in hope, inherited glory and honor, and were exalted by God, and became gracious in their memory forever and ever. Amen.
Chapter XLVI
Such examples we must imitate, brethren. For it is written: “cleave unto the saints; for those who cling to them will be sanctified.” And again in another place it is said: “With an innocent man you will be innocent, and with a chosen one you will be chosen, but with a wicked man you will be depraved” (Ps. 17:26-27). So, let us join the innocent and the righteous, they are the chosen ones of God. Why do you have strife; anger of disagreement, division, war? Do we not have one God and one Christ? Is there not one Spirit of grace poured out on us, is there not one calling in Christ? Why do we tear and tear apart the members of Christ, rebel against our own body, and reach such madness that we forget that we are each other's members? Remember the words of Jesus our Lord He said: “Woe to that man; it would have been better for him not to have been born, than to offend one of my chosen ones; it would be better for him if he hung up a millstone and plunged into the sea than to offend one of my little ones.” Your separation has corrupted many, plunged many into despondency, many into doubt, and all of us into sorrow; but your confusion still continues.
Chapter XLVII
Take the message of the blessed apostle Paul. What was the first thing he wrote to you about at the beginning of the gospel sermon? Truly, out of inspiration, he wrote to you both about himself, and about Cephas and Apollos, because even then you were divided into different sides. But the division then exposed you to a lesser sin; for you bowed down to the side of the glorified apostles, and to the side of the man approved by them. And now think what kind of people have corrupted you and diminished the beauty of your famous brotherly love. A shameful thing, beloved, and extremely shameful and unworthy of Christian life is heard: the firmest and most ancient church of Corinth, because of one or two people, rebelled against the presbyters. And this rumor has reached not only us, but even our enemies, so that through your madness the name of the Lord is subjected to mockery, and danger is prepared for you yourself.
Chapter XLVIII
So, let's stop this as soon as possible, and fall down to the Lord, and tearfully beseech Him that He, having mercy, reconcile with us, and restore in us the former beautiful and pure life, complete brotherly love. This is the gate of righteousness, opened to life, as it is written: “Open me the gates of righteousness; I will go in with you and praise the Lord. This is the gate of the Lord, the righteous will enter through it” (Ps. 117:19–20). Of the many gates that are open, the gates of righteousness are the gates of Christ, and blessed are those who enter through them and direct their procession in holiness and righteousness, doing everything without indignation. If anyone is firm in faith, or able to offer higher knowledge, or wise in the discussion of speeches, or pure in his deeds, the more he should humble himself, the more he seems great, and should seek the common good, and not his own.
Chapter XLIX
Whoever has love in Christ must keep the commandments of Christ. Who can explain the union of God's love? Who is able, as it should, to express the greatness of His goodness? The height to which love can be raised is unspeakable. Love connects us to God; love covers many sins (1 Pet. 4:8; 1 Cor. 13:4 et seq.; James 5:2), love accepts everything, endures everything magnanimously. In love there is nothing low, nothing arrogant, love does not allow division, love does not cause indignation, love does everything in harmony, all God's chosen ones have reached perfection through love, without love there is nothing pleasing to God. The Lord took us in love; because of the love that Jesus Christ, our Lord, had for us, by the will of God gave blood My for us, and flesh My for our flesh and soul My for our souls.
Chapter L
You see, beloved, how great and marvelous love is, and its perfection is inexpressible. Who can have it if God Himself does not deign it? So, let us ask and implore His mercy, so that we can live in love immaculately, without human division. All generations from Adam to this day have passed; but those who have been made perfect in love by the grace of God are in the place of the pious: they will be revealed with the coming of the kingdom of Christ. For it is written: “Go into the temples for a while, until My wrath and indignation pass away, and I will remember the good day, and I will raise you up from your graves” (Is.26:20; Ezek.37:12-13). Blessed are we, beloved, if we fulfill the commandments of God in the unanimity of love, so that through love our sins may be forgiven us. For it is written: “Blessed are those whose iniquities are forgiven and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin, and there is no deceit in his mouth” (Ps. 31:1,2). This promise of blessedness refers to those who are chosen by God through Jesus Christ our Lord. To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen.
Chapter LI
So, in what we have sinned due to some slander of the enemy, we must ask for forgiveness. And those who have been the leaders of revolt and dissension must have in mind the common hope. For those who spend their lives in fear and love would rather be in trouble themselves than subject their neighbors, and they will more willingly accept condemnation on themselves than on the good and holy consent given to us. And it is better for a man to confess his sins than to harden his heart, as the heart of those who revolted against the servant of God Moses hardened: the judgment was clearly over them, for they descended alive into hell and swallowed up their death (Numbers 16). Pharaoh, his army, all the leaders of Egypt, and their chariots and horsemen, drowned in the Red Sea and perished for no other reason (Ex. 14), but because their foolish hearts were hardened, after so many signs and wonders performed in the land of Egypt through the servant of God Moses.
Chapter LII
Brothers! The Lord did not need anything, and does not require anything from anyone, except confession to Him. For the chosen David says: “I confess to the Lord, and this will be more pleasing to Him than a young calf with horns and hooves growing. Let the poor see it and rejoice” (Ps. 68:31–33). And again he says: “Offer to God a sacrifice of praise and offer up your prayers to the Most High. And call on Me in the day of your trouble, and I will deliver you, and you will glorify Me (Ps. 49:14-15). For sacrifice to God is a broken spirit” (Ps. 50:19).
Chapter LIII
You know, beloved, and you know well the sacred Scriptures, and you understand the words of God. So, bring to your memory: when Moses ascended the mountain and spent forty days and forty nights in fasting and humility, then the Lord said to him: “Moses, Moses, get down quickly from here, because your people who you brought out of the earth committed a crime Egyptian; soon they turned away from the path that you commanded them - they made fusions for themselves. And the Lord said to him: I have spoken to you once and twice, saying, I have seen this people, and behold, they are a stiff-necked people. Let Me destroy him, and I will destroy his name under heaven, and I will make you a great and marvelous people and many of them.” Moses said: “No, Lord, forgive the sin of this people, or cut me out of the book of the living” (Ex. 32:7 et seq.). Oh great love! Oh incomparable perfection! The servant boldly speaks to the Lord, asks for forgiveness for the people; otherwise, he wants to be destroyed along with them.
Chapter LIV
Therefore, whoever among you is noble, who is good-natured, who is full of love, let him say: if because of me rebellion is discord and division, I depart, I go wherever you please, and I will do everything that the people command, if only the flock of Christ would be in peace with the appointed presbyters. Whoever does this will gain great glory for himself in the Lord, and every place will receive him: for “the land of the Lord and the fulfillment of it” (Ps. 23:1). This is how all who lead a commendable divine life have acted and will continue to act.
Chapter LV
But let's imagine pagan examples Many kings and leaders during the pestilence, at the suggestion of the soothsayer, betrayed themselves to death in order to save their citizens with their blood. Many withdrew from their cities in order to stop the revolt in them. And among our own we know many who put themselves into bondage in order to set others free. Many gave themselves over into slavery, and taking the price for themselves fed others. Many women, strengthened by the grace of God, have done many courageous deeds. Blessed Judith, during the siege of the city, asked permission from the elders to go to the camp of foreigners. And she went, putting herself in danger out of love for her fatherland and the besieged people, and the Lord delivered Holofernes into the hands of a woman (Judith. 8:30). Esther, perfect in faith, exposed herself to no less danger in order to save the twelve tribes of Israel from impending destruction. In fasting and humility, she implored the all-seeing Lord, the God of the ages, Who, seeing the humility of her soul, delivered the people, for whose good she put herself in danger.
Chapter VI
Let us also pray for those who are in sin, that they may be granted meekness and humility, that they would obey not us, but the will of God. For in this way it will be fruitful and completely merciful for them to remember them before God and the saints. Let us accept a punishment that no one should grieve at, beloved! The mutual admonition we make to each other is good and very useful, for it clings to the will of God. For thus says the Holy Word: “The Lord punished me severely, but did not put me to death; for whom the Lord loves, he punishes, and beats every son whom he receives (Ps. 118:48; Prov. 3:12; Heb. 12:6). The righteous will punish me mercifully and rebuke me; but let not the oil of the sinner anoint my head” (Ps. 141:5). And he says again: “Blessed is the man whom the Lord has rebuked; and do not turn away from the admonition of the Almighty, for He causes sorrow and again restores, strikes and His hands heal. Six times to save you from troubles, on the seventh time evil will not touch you. In time of famine he will save you from death, in time of war he will save you from the hand of iron; from the scourge of the tongue will protect you, and you will not be afraid of the coming disasters. You will laugh at the unrighteous and lawless, and you will not be afraid of wild animals; for the wild beasts will be at peace with you. Then you will know that your house will enjoy peace and there will be no lack of accommodation for your tent. You will also know that your seed is great, and your children will be like the various grains of the field. You will descend into the grave like ripe wheat reaped at the right time, or like a stack of threshing floor brought in at the right time” (Job 5:17–26). You see, beloved, that those who are punished by the Lord are under His protection, for, being good, God punishes us so that we may understand His holy punishment.
Chapter LVII
So, you, who initiated the rebellion, submit to the presbyters, and accept admonition to repentance, bowing the knee of your heart. Learn humility by laying aside the vainglorious and haughty audacity of the tongue. For it is better for you to be small and respected in the flock of Christ, than to appear excessively high and lose His hope. For thus says all-perfect Wisdom: “Behold, I will offer you the word of My breath, and I will teach you My understanding. Because I called and you did not listen, I spoke and you did not heed, but rejected My advice, and did not submit to My reproofs: then I will laugh at your destruction, and I will rejoice when destruction comes to you, and when confusion suddenly overtakes you, a revolution will come like a storm, or when sorrow and calamity come to you. It will come to pass that you call on me, but I will not listen to you; the wicked will seek me, and they will not find me. For they hated wisdom, they did not receive the fear of the Lord, and they did not want to heed My advice, but laughed at My reproofs. And therefore they will taste the fruits of their ways and be satisfied with their ungodliness...” (Prov. 1:23–31).
Chapter LVIII
All-seeing God and Lord of spirits and the Lord of all flesh, having chosen the Lord Jesus Christ and through Him the chosen people, may he give to every soul that calls on His great and holy name, faith, fear, peace, patience, magnanimity, temperance, purity and chastity in the pleasing of His name through the High Priest and Advocate of our Jesus Christ, through whom to Him be glory, majesty, power and honor now and forever and ever. Amen.
Chapter IX
Those sent from us, Claudius Ephebes and Valerius Viton with Fortunatus, immediately release to us in peace with joy, so that they quickly inform us of the peace and your consent that we desire and desire for us, so that we too can rejoice at your well-being. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you and with all who are everywhere called by God and through Him; through whom be glory, honor, power and majesty, an eternal throne, from ages to ages of ages. Amen.
Clement's Epistle to the Corinthians 1st .
Application
The first letter of Clement of Rome to the Corinthians (Ch. 57, 7 - 63, 3)
57. (7) “... For because they offended babies, they will be killed, and the judgment of the wicked will destroy. But the one who listens to me will dwell (confidently) in hope and rest without fear from any evil.
58. (1) Let us therefore obey His all-holy and glorious name, avoiding the threats prophesied by Wisdom to the disobedient, in order to “dwell confidently” in the most holy name of His majesty. (2) Take our advice, and you will not repent. For God lives and the Lord Jesus Christ lives, and the Holy Spirit, the faith and hope of the elect, so that he who, in humility of mind, with unceasing meekness, fulfilled the commandments and commands given by God, without repenting [of this], - this one will be appointed and chosen among those who are saved through Jesus Christ, through whom to him be glory forever and ever. Amen.
59 1 But if some will not obey what he has spoken through us, let them know that they will be bound by a fall and no small danger.
[Great Prayer]
(2) We will be innocent of this sin, and the imams pray unceasingly, asking and pleading, may the Creator of all preserve the indestructible number of His chosen ones throughout the world through His beloved Servant (our Lord), and deliver us from those who hate us unrighteously. (4) Grant unanimity and peace to us and to all who inhabit the earth, as if you were given by our fathers, calling to them holy in faith and truth, submit [us] to be the almighty and all-perfect Name of Yours, and our prince and leader on earth.
61. (1) You, Master, gave you the power of the kingdom to them of splendor and Your inexpressible power for the sake of, in a hedgehog we know the glory and honor given to them by You, to submit to them, to oppose Your will in no way; Grant to them, O Lord, health, peace, unanimity, prosperity, in order to fulfill the guidance given to them by You without blasphemy. (2) You, Lord of heaven, the King of the ages, give the sons of men glory and honor and power over those on earth: You, Lord, correct their advice to the good and pleasing before You, as if in peace and meekness piously given to them by You power, they will find You are merciful. (3) The only one who can do this and great good with us, we confess to you through the High Priest and Representative of our souls Jesus Christ, through Worthless to you glory and majesty, now and unto generations of generations and forever and ever. Amen.
[Conclusion]
62. (1) So, about the deeds worthy of our reverence for God and the most useful for a virtuous life for those who want to lead it piously and righteously, we have written enough to you, brethren. (2) For we have touched on everything that pertains to faith, repentance, sincere love, temperance, chastity and patience, reminding you that in justice, truth and generosity, you should sacredly please the Almighty God, in one mind, without rancor, in love and peace , with unceasing meekness, like our fathers named above, pleasing humbly wise towards the Father, God and the Creator and towards all people. (3) And it was all the more pleasant for us to recall this because we write - as we clearly know - to faithful and glorious men, delving into the sayings of the teaching of God.
63. (1) It is therefore just, following such great and many examples, to bend the neck and take the place of obedience, so that, having rested from vain excitement, we may achieve in truth the goal set before us without any shame. (2) For you will give us joy and gladness if you obey what we have written through the Holy Spirit and cut off the unjust wrath of your jealousy, in accordance with the exhortation to peace and harmony, which we addressed to you in this epistle.
(3) So we sent faithful and wise men, who from youth to old age behaved blamelessly among us, who will be witnesses between us and you. (4) And we did so that you know that all our care was and is - so that you quickly reach peace.
Regarding the Corinthian outrage that served as a pretext for writing the Epistle of Clement, Schenkel's hypothesis is remarkable. Schenkel (de ecclosia corinthia primaeva) suggests that in Corinth the party that, in a proud claim to direct spiritual communion with Christ, rebelled against the authority of the apostles during their lifetime (1 Cor. 1:12); and now she revolted against the apostolic institution of the ecclesiastical hierarchy and against the ecclesiastical order in general as a constraint on Christian freedom. But without touching Schenkel's opinion about this party, how does it go to the 1 epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians, we note in relation to the Clementine Epistle that there is not even a hint that the perpetrators of the Corinthian rebellion, in contrast to the authority of the apostles, had a claim to a special relation to Christ, the words of Clement, that Christ belongs to the humble, and not to those who are exalted above His flock, that He gave us the highest example of humility (chap. 16), indicates only that the root of the Corinthian division was pride and self-exaltation. The author of the epistle assumes the common foundation of the vira - the One Christ (ch. 46) and considers it incongruous to overthrow him in practice, in life, as some members of the Corinthian Church did. Moreover, it is not clear that the authority of the apostles was denied or questioned by them, on the contrary, the writer of the epistle uses it to convince the restoration of peace and church order, and therefore points not only to the initial origin of the church hierarchy, but also to the decree of the apostles on the subsequent continuous continuation of the church order. primates.
Gefele. Patrum Apostle. Opp. XXVI. Ed. IV.
Tert. de praescr. hair. With. 32.
Augustina, Optata Milev.
Jer. catal. With. 15. In other writings, Jerome names Clement as Peter's successor (adv. Jovinian. 1 p. 7 and commentary on pr. Isaiah).
Tertullian (apolog. p. 5) says: tentaverat et Domiitianns, portio Neronis de crudelitate, sed qua et homo facile coeptum repressit, restitutis etiam, quos relegaverat.
Er. ad. Diogn. With. 3; just. Dial. With. Tryph. With. 117.
Gefele Patr. Apostle, opp. Proleg. XXV, where he gives 7 similar passages from the compared epistles.
Literally from Greek - wandering, living on a foreign side (pariokwsa). See Polycarp last. to Philip. 1. This expressed the consciousness of Christians that they are strangers and strangers on earth (1 Peter 2:11), who do not have a permanent residence and the right of citizenship here, but live in a certain place of this world, as temporarily settled strangers. The writer of the epistle to Diognetus (ch. 5.) says that Christians live in their homelands, but as temporary settlers (paroikoi). See 2 Clement's Epistle. ch. 5.
Others translate: the things you asked about. But in this case, instead of: epidhtwmenon par umin should be par umwn. And in this expression there is no basis for the usual assumption expressed by Cotelier, Hefele and others, that the Corinthians, in their affairs, turned to the Roman Church and its bishop. There is no allusion to this or elsewhere in the epistle; on the contrary, from 47 ch. it can be seen that the news of the Corinthian riots reached the Roman Christians in the same way as the Roman pagans, precisely by ear.
Of course, on the part of the pagans, who also heard rumors about the discord between the Corinthian Christians, as can be seen from 47 ch. Wed Ignat. Thrall. ch. eight.
These words: "Whoever has been with you ... walked in the commandments of God" are given by Clement Alex. Strom. IV. With. 17.
That is, to the presbyters. Since the indignation in Corinth concerned the church order, the word elder (presbuteroV) should not be understood in general about the senior members of the church, but about the rank of church primates, with which, however, the perfect maturity of age was also combined in antiquity. See ch. 44, 47. This is how Hefele and Gilgenfeld think. The word “leaders” (hgwemnoi) can generally be attributed to persons of the church hierarchy, no matter what their rank and name. Guillenf.
Breadth (platusmoV) among the Fathers of the Church often means joyful states of the heart. See Hermas Pastor, mandat. V.I.
Here, as in other places, Clement quotes biblical words from the text of 70 interpreters, however, not with literal accuracy.
On the sevenfold conclusion of St. Paul is not mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles.
They understand Italy, and in particular Rome, as the border of the west in relation to the east. This opinion is held by those who reject the second bonds of Paul in Rome, e.g. Baur Schenkel and Gilgenfeld. Others (Neander Guericke, Gug, etc.) attribute this to Spain, about the journey to which it is supposed to speak of ap. Paul in Romans 15:24.
Thus we translate according to Gilgenfeld's opinion. The Danaids, the daughters of Davai, the king of Argos, by order of their father, killed their husbands during sleep, and for that in the underworld or in hell they were punished - to always draw water into a holed barrel, Dirk for his anger and persecution against Antiope, the daughter of the Theban king Niktey , suffered punishment from the sons of the latter: she was tied to the horns of a bull and, tortured to death, was thrown into the river. See Reallexibon des classisch. Alterthums, Lubker, 1860. By this. known in Greek mythology, according to his crimes to the women of the pagan world, Clement, for contrast, compares the Christian martyrs who innocently suffered from the pagans. - Cotelier revered Danae and Dirk as Christian martyrs, but such names were not preserved in martyrologies. Jacobson thinks that these words were moved by an awkward copyist from the margins into the text itself.
These words are not found in Holy Scripture. See Ps. 103:11; Isaiah 1:18; Jer. 3:19,22.
That Noah, before his ascension into the ark, announcing the coming cataclysm to people in time for him, called them to repentance and correction of their lives, this idea is expressed by Theophilus of Antioch (Ad Autol. III. 19).
That is, God's. Clement Alexander. abbreviated these words of Clement of Rome, he calls Abraham iloi qeou. See Isaiah 41:8; 2 Chronicles 20:7; James 2:23.
That is, to the west.
A contemporary of Clement, Flavius Josephus (Antiqu. I, 11, 4) says that he saw this pillar; the church fathers, for example, Irenaeus (adv. haer. IV, 31), also mention its existence in their time. But according to the research of scientists, the inhabitants of that country falsely gave out something for the pillar of Lot's wife (Frey at Hefele).
The mysterious interpretation of the sign by which Rahab escaped is found in Justin (Dial p. Tryph. II, III), Irenaeus (adv. haer. IV, 20) and others.
These words are not found in the Pentateuch of Moses, and it is not known where they were taken from.
Instead of dia thV fwnhV, which is in the manuscript and in printed editions, Clement of Alexandria reads dia thV sighV, which, according to scientists, goes better to the point.
After general exhortations to repentance, obedience, and peace, based primarily on Old Testament writings and on consideration of the will of God for all people, Clement turns to the Christian faith and to moral activity, which should be consistent with the religion of grace. But since full manifestation divine grace will follow in the future and is an object of hope for the Christian, then the author of the epistle especially dwells on the future resurrection of the dead, with which the fullness of the grace and promises of God will be revealed.
These words are not found in St. Scripture. According to Cotelier and others, they are borrowed from some apocryphal work. But Wotton guesses that this saying was formed by Clement from the words of the apostles James (James 1:8) and Peter (2 Pet. 3:3-4).
This change of night and day, as an image of death and resurrection, is beautifully portrayed by Tertullian (De resurr. p. 12).
The mythological legend about the Phoenix bird, very similar to Klimentov, is found in Herodotus (II, 73). She is mentioned in the book of Job (Job 29:18); According to the translation from Hebrew, this verse Hirzel reads: I will die with my nest and multiply the days like a phoenix (Gilgenf). But in the translation of 70 interpreters, after being demolished with verse 19, which speaks of plants by the water, under the phoenix (zelecoV foinikoV), it is easier to understand the palm tree. - Clement of Rome, the first of the Christian writers, presents the phoenix as a symbol of the future resurrection of the dead. He was followed by Tertullian (de resurr. p. 13), who explains the words of Psalm 91:13: “the righteous will flourish like a phoenix” - explains in relation to the fabulous bird. Lactantius in the poem about the Phoenix combines both, deriving the name of the tree from the bird that perched on top of it.
That is, one individual, in one copy ( monogeneV uparcwn).
About this place in the book of Job, cited, however, by Clement is rather inaccurate according to the text of 70 interpreters, Blessed. Jerome notes: no one speaks so openly after the (coming) of Christ about the resurrection, as he (Job) before Christ. Orr. T. II, r. 438, ed. Vallars.
This is how it is read in all manuscripts of the text of 70 interpreters. But in the Hebrew text and in the Vulgate it says: according to the number of the sons of Israel. The reading given by Clement, the thought of which is also expressed in Sirach (Sir. 17:17), is already in Philo (de post Gain. § 25 De plant Noe § 14). St. Justin (dial. c. Tryph. p. 131) rejects the reading of the Hebrew text as corrupted by the Jews.
According to scholars, Clement compiled this from the words Deut. 4:34 and Num. 18:26, as well as 2 Chr. holy firstfruits to God, which are made the holy of holies.
Literally: sceptres. The word scepter is used here in the meaning of the knee, as in the 3rd book. Kings 11:31,35. The meaning is this: Jacob became the ancestor of the 12 tribes of Israel.
These words are almost literally quoted by St. Paul in 1 Cor., as the words of Scripture. AT Old Testament a similar saying is found in Isaiah (Isaiah 64:3,4).
The words: as if by a lion ( wV lewn) - are not found either in the Hebrew text or in the Greek translation of 70 interpreters.
That is, the heads of the provinces, who also had military power.
These words are given by Clement Alexander. (Strom IV, 17).
Here in the manuscript there is a lack of one word, Nolte supplements this with the word: sigatw be silent.
Literally: place (topoV). This word is used in the sense of a rank or rank, connected with the administration of a special service. See below ch. XLI, also Ign. to Polik. ch. I, to Smyrna. ch. VI, Polik. to Philip, ch. XI.
St. Clement speaks of the higher, spiritual character of the Christian religion in comparison with Judaism.
By this name, Clement also refers to the actual so-called presbyters, whom they appoint to perform sacred rites and share with them the work of shepherding the flock of Christ. Below, Clement speaks of the same pastors of the church, calling them presbyters.
However, Clement changes the reading of 70 interpreters to suit his own thought, instead of princes (arcontaV) naming deacons.
Outlining this event from the book. Number Ch. 17, Clement adds some details that are omitted from St. Scripture, but probably borrowed from Jewish tradition.
Literally: about the episcopal name (epi tou onomatoV); this word also means title, dignity.
That is, bishops (in the broadest sense) and deacons. It is remarkable that Clement speaks of the apostles in general and calls them ours, without exposing the special authority of St. Peter and any advantage of the church.
Epinomh, according to Gilgenfeld, here means an addition to the law: i.e., the apostles, in addition to the fact that the first of the converts were appointed bishops and deacons, made a further order that, after the death of the persons appointed by them, their office would again be bequeathed to others worthy. In the next sentence, “so that when they rest,” the subject does not refer to the apostles, but to their successors.
For example, Titus, Timothy, and other co-workers of the apostles, who were given to supply bishops, presbyters, and deacons.
The participation of the people in the appointment of bishops and other sacred persons, which actually belonged to the apostles and their successors, is expressed here with approval (suneudokhsiV). On this see Cyprian Epist. 55 and 68 and Origen Hom. in Lev (Tom. II. 216. ed. Bene d.). Cyprian says: let the priest be elected in the presence of the people in the sight of all, and the worthy and capable must be approved by public opinion and testimony, so that in the presence of the people either the crimes of bad people or the merits of good people are revealed. (Epist. 63).
That is, the Eucharist. See Ign. Smyrn, ch. VII. Decree Ap. VIII, 12.
These words are not found in Holy Scripture. Wed Klim. Alex. Strom. V, 8.
Here Clement combined several places from the Gospel into one, namely Matt. 18:6; 26:24; Luke 17:2; Mark 9:12.
First post. to the Corinthians.
That is, not Christians. Wed Romans 2:24; 1 Tim. 6:1; Ign. to Thrall. ch. VIII.
In this remarkable and at the same time difficult passage, Gilgenfeld relates the words “before the saints” to the church itself, but such an interpretation here presents the incongruity that it, the church, is called by Clement to intercede in prayer for forgiveness of those who have sinned before God and the saints, i.e. church... The Protestant publisher of the writings of the apostolic men, Dressel (pp. 101–130 in a note), disagreeing with Hilgenfeld, recognizes it better to understand here the invocation of saints glorified by God for the courageous confession of His name (see ch. 45 and 46 of the epistle . Klimentova). Since the saints will judge the world (1 Cor. 6:2; Apoc. 20: 4), it is natural for Christians to call on the saints in their prayers so that they turn away or ease the punishment of people who have fallen into sin.
That is, I reject the joys prepared for me by sinners.
By presbyters we mean here the primates of the church in general, without distinction of degrees, as is often the case in the book The Shepherd.
In the manuscript, according to Junius, one sheet is missing here. Scientists make assumptions about the content of the missing. On the basis of evidence in an essay published in the edition of the works of St. Justina torment. (quaestiones, et responsiones ad orthodoxos, 74; cf. Irin. adv. haer. III, 3:3), Clement gave the Corinthians the testimony of the Sibyl about the fiery punishment of the wicked. Such a mention of the Sibyl is appropriate in the epistle of Clement, who (chap. 6) is not averse to pagan mythology, and befits its conclusion. Gefele thinks that the words of Clement quoted by Basil the Great (about the Holy Spirit, ch. 29): God lives and the Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit refer to this place of the epistle.
Wed Fast. Apostle VIII, 11, 2. Cf. Job 4:4.
Wed Sir.51:26.
Center of St. Clement begins a series of publications of a new translation of the First Epistle of St. Clement of Rome to the Corinthians with Greek text, critical apparatus and commentaries. This first publication contains the first three chapters of the Epistle.
St. Clement of Rome is one of the first "apostolic men" or "apostolic fathers" in terms of time and significance. So it is customary to call Christian figures and writers of the late I - early II century, who became the successors of the apostles in their mission and ministry, whose writings were acquired in church tradition great prestige. The circle of creations of the apostolic men traditionally includes the Didache, or the Teaching of the 12 Apostles, the Epistle of St. Barnabas, two letters of St. Clement of Rome to the Corinthians - 1st and 2nd, Epistles of St. Ignatius of Antioch (or Ignatius the God-bearer), Epistle of St. Polycarp of Smyrna to the Philippians, the “Shepherd” of Hermas, as well as excerpts from Papias of Hierapolis and two martyr acts - “The Martyrdom of St. Polycarp of Smyrna" and "The Martyrdom of St. Ignatius the God-bearer".
The personality of St. Clement has always riveted attention to itself equally in the West and East, since, being one of the first Roman bishops (according to the most accepted version, the third after Linus and Anacleta, or the fourth, if the Apostle Peter is considered the first), he writes in Greek “on behalf of Roman Church" (Eusebius, church history III.38.1) the so-called First Epistle to the Corinthians, i.e. to the church in the east of the empire. This is the only undoubtedly authentic work of his, all the rest (the Second Epistle to the Corinthians, the Apostolic Constitutions, two epistles on virginity, sermons and epistles included in the collection of Pseudo-Clementines) are attributed to him later, in view of his widespread veneration. Although the life of St. Clement has almost no historically reliable data, his influence in the Church from the very beginning was great, being due, first of all, to his Epistle to the Corinthians, which was even ranked among the Holy Scriptures and was read at the service, and the tradition of his martyrdom in Chersonesos under Emperor Trajan (98-117 years), although it appears late, at the end of the 4th - beginning of the 5th century. Some ancient church writers identified St. Clement with the employee of the same name, Ap. Paul (Phil. 4:3), and the legend of his life in the "Pseudo-Clementines" considers him to be the same person as the consul Titus Flavius Clement, cousin of the emperor Domitian (81-96), who was executed for "godlessness", i.e. ., probably for the Christian faith (Dio Cassius, LXVII.14), but both of these identifications are not recognized modern science. Ancient church writers called St. Clement an apostolic disciple, an apostolic husband, and even an apostle.
The posthumous earthly fate of St. Clement turned out to be connected with the mission of the Slavic educators Cyril and Methodius Equal to the Apostles. "The Life of Constantine the Philosopher" (ch. VIII) tells about the acquisition of St. Cyril (Konstantin) in 861 the relics of St. Clement in the sea near Chersonesus (now Sevastopol), his arrival with the relics in Rome, the solemn meeting with his Pope Adrian II and about the miracles from Clement's relics. Another legend, reflected in the Tale of Bygone Years, reports that, having been baptized in Chersonese, Prince Vladimir brought with him the relics of Clement and his disciple Thebes to Kyiv and laid them in the Church of the Tithes. This can be understood in such a way that either Cyril and Methodius took part of the relics of Clement to Rome, and Vladimir took the rest, or they took the relics in their entirety, and subsequently Vladimir received the Clement chapter from the papal ambassadors (the arrival of ambassadors to Prince Vladimir from Rome is mentioned in Nikonovskaya Chronicle and Book of Degrees). Head of St. Clement rests now in the Far Caves of the Holy Dormition Kiev-Pechersk Lavra.
The message of St. Clement (1 Klim.), usually dated to 95-97 years. (other dates were also proposed), consists of a greeting inscription and 65 chapters, which can be divided into five main parts: introduction (1 Klim. I-III); the first part (IV-XXXV) - moral and exhortation; the second part (XXXVI-LXI) - doctrinal and disciplinary; final great prayer (LIX.2-LXI); general conclusion (LXII-LXV).
Content. Having learned about the strife in the Corinthian Church, the Roman Church, through Clement, who does not name himself anywhere in the Epistle, as if preferring to remain in the background, addresses the Corinthian community in the rhetorical style of an “exhortation” (or “symboleutical”) letter, calling the Corinthians to peace, unanimity, humility, obedience to the elders (presbyters) and deanery in the church. We know almost nothing definite about these quarrels, except that it was a rebellion (probably by young people, III.3) against some particular presbyter elders and their removal from their respective ministry (LVII.1, XLIV.3) . The author praises the former - before the rebellion - a truly Christian and at the same time highly moral in the universal human sense way of life of the Corinthians (I-II), then denounces the rebels, recalling the reason for the loss of the world - "vile and wrong" jealousy, using examples from ancient biblical history and recent events - persecution under Nero (III-VI). Further, the author makes a long digression from the main purpose of his letter and gives many role models for humility, repentance, obedience, faith and hospitality and relevant quotations, mainly from the Old Testament (IX-XV, XVII-XVIII, XXVII-XXXV), in the center which are the humility of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself (XVI) and His glory (XXXVI). In confirmation of the call for unanimity, the author points to the improvement of the cosmos (XIX-XX), to the eschatological gifts prepared for the faithful (XXIII), along the way proving the truth of the resurrection of the dead (XXIV-XXVI). In the second part of St. Clement focuses on the main goal of the Epistle - the establishment of prosperity in the church community, where everyone has their own ministry: the church hierarchy is established by the will of God (XLII), the succession of church leadership is established from the apostles (XLIV.1-3), so that the unauthorized removal of presbyters is a big sin (XLIV.4-6). The problematic topics of the second part - what exactly is meant by the ministry of bishops and presbyters, what is the nature and boundaries of power and obedience in the community, etc. - are the subject of disputes between researchers, and often - especially in the past - in connection with their confessional affiliation: Catholics argued that that in 1 Klim. the doctrine of the church hierarchy and the monarchical episcopate is already reflected; Protestants insisted on the free charisma of the early Christian communities, which is why the call of St. Clement's unconditional obedience to the presbyters was regarded as a hierarchical mentality alien to the original Christianity; the Orthodox were inclined to take an intermediate position: the episcopal ministry was then still in its infancy (and therefore did not have a stable designation), but in a state of organic growth. The imitation of Paul's hymn of love (XLIX) sounds like a culmination of the instructive-exhorting spirit of the Epistle, and the final great prayer colors the Epistle in the tones of the universal liturgy.
Textology and editions of the text. The message of St. Clement has come down to us in the Greek original in two manuscripts: 1) at the end of the Codex Alexandrinus (5th century), containing the books of the Old and New Testaments, but without the ending of the Epistle (missing LVII.7-LXIII.4); 2) completely in the Code of Constantinople, or Jerusalem (XI century), discovered by Philotheus Vriy, Metropolitan of Nicomedia, in the library of the Holy Sepulcher Jerusalem Compound in Constantinople (first edition - 1875). There are also ancient translations of the Epistle: Latin (II-III centuries), Syriac (VIII century?) and fragments of two Coptic translations (IV-VII centuries).
Since the first edition (editio princeps) of the Epistle by Patricius Junius (Patricius Junius or P. Young) according to the Alexandrian Code in 1633 and then the more authoritative edition of Jean Baptist Cotelier (J. B. Cotelier or Cotelerius, 1672), it has been published many times. Recent critical editions: A. Jaubert, 1971, 2000; G. Schneider, 1994; B. D. Ehrman, 2003; M. Holmes, 2007.
Commented editions and studies. Among the commented publications, first of all, two should be noted, which stand out for their volume and thoroughness: in English. language J. B. Lightfoot, 1890 (in two volumes, the 1st of which is an introduction-study on 400 pages), and on it. language H. E. Lona, 1998 (more than 650 pages). From other editions with comments and notes, as a rule, of a much smaller volume, we will name: J. C. M. Laurent, 1870 (lat.); O. de Gebhardt and A. Harnack, 1875, 1876 (German), and A. Harnack, 1929 (German); Ph. Bpyennios, 1883 (Greek); R. Knopf, 1920 (German); W. K. L. Clarke, 1937; R. M. Grant and H. H. Graham, 1965; A. Jaubert, 1971 (French); A. Lindemann, 1992 (German); A. Calvo, 1994 (Spanish); J. A. Fischer, 1998 (German); E. Peretto, 1999 (Italian).
The message of St. Clement and certain related issues were devoted to special studies by William Wrede (W. Wrede), 1891 (German; a small dissertation work considering the church structure according to 1 Klim. and the relationship to the Old Testament); L. Sanders, 1943 (French; on the Hellenistic context and terminology of 1 Klim in relation to its Pauline character); G. Bardy, 1945 (French; on the ecclesiology of St. Clement and St. Irenaeus in a Catholic interpretation); A. W. Ziegler, 1958 (German; also on Hellenistic roots); O. Knoch, 1964 (German; study of the eschatology of St. Clement with the conclusion about the "deeschatologisation" of the original Christian kerygma); K. Beyschlag, 1966 (German; a large study on religious and cultural-historical sources 1 Klim.); G. Brunner, 1972 (German; a holistic analysis of the theology of 1 Klim. with the recognition of the central theological theme for ecclesiology); J. Fuellenbach, 1980 (English; the problem of church order and Roman primacy in 1 Klim.); D. Peterlin, 1988 (English; on church order and unity in 1 Klim.). According to the Christology of St. Clement can be noted H. Bumpus, 1972 (English); P. Henne, 1992 (French). A number of works, especially recently, are devoted to the ethical and social aspects of 1 Klim.: C. Eggenberger, 1951 (German); P. Mikat, 1969 (German); R. Menegnelli, 1970 (Italian); J. S. Jeffers, 1991; H. O. Maier, 1991; D. G. Horrell, 1996; T. Schmitt, 2002 (German); also a rhetorical analysis of the Message - B. E. Bowe, 1988; O. M. Bakke, 2001. D. A. Hagner, 1973, examines quotations from Scripture and other sources in 1 Clim. One voluminous (600 pages) recent study is devoted to the prayer of 1 Klim. (LIX-LXI) - H. Löhr, 2003 (German). We have named only books, without mentioning numerous scientific articles; in addition, there is, of course, a lot of general theological and historical studies affecting 1 Klim. and related topics.
Translations into Russian. The message was translated into Russian more than once: two translations appeared in the 18th century. (anonymous handwritten, stored in the library of St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences, and I. I. Dmitrevsky, M. 1781) and two - in the XIX century: prot. Gerasim of Pavsky ( Christian reading, part 14, 1824) and prot. Peter Preobrazhensky (first edition - M. 1860). All translations are from editions based on the Codex Alexandrinus and therefore do not contain the ending of the Epistle (LVII.7-LXIII.4). The translation of this ending was first made by A. A. Priselkov ( Review of the Epistles of St. Clement, Ep. Roman, to the Corinthians. Issue 1. Review of the First Epistle, St. Petersburg. 1888). Translation about. Peter the Preobrazhensky, like his other translations of the apostolic men and apologists, is among the best pre-revolutionary examples - both in language and style, and in terms of accuracy of translation. It was reprinted many times before the revolution and in the post-Soviet period (without the specified ending, which was published for the first time after Priselkov's work in the reprint of "The Scriptures of the Apostolic Men", Riga 1992). There is another anonymous full translation published in the Journal of the Moscow Patriarchy, No. 10, 1974.
In Russian theology, there are only a few works devoted to 1 Klim., which are more of an overview nature: the aforementioned dissertation by A. A. Priselkov, as well as articles by K. Skvortsov (1874), P. Petrushevsky (1897), L. Kabyzhakova (1987, ZhMP , No. 1).
Published Greek text The epistles are based on 5 editions - Lightfoot, Jaubert, Schneider, Ehrman and Holmes (see abbreviations), where it is almost the same; in the few cases of discrepancy, we chose the preferred reading based on textual and semantic considerations.
Need new translation dictated both by time (more than 150 years have passed since the translation of Preobrazhensky), and by textual and philological clarifications of some places made in new editions. Our translation, we dare to think, corresponds to the norms of the modern literary language, but sometimes it is not alien to archaisms and Slavicisms: firstly, in those cases where they successfully convey the Greek. (especially complex) words; secondly, sometimes where the author uses rare words (several times - real hapax legomenon, i.e. nowhere else in all Greek. not found in the literature) or phrases. In square brackets in the translation there are words that we believe are implied in the Greek. text.
critical apparatus , i.e. reading options in manuscripts and ancient translations, like our entire publication, are not purely scientific, but popular science in nature: 1) All passages are given with the translation, which is never done in a critical apparatus. 2) From among all the discrepancies, we selected only those that have at least a small value for meaning of the text and can be reflected in the translation (in particular, we did not include in our apparatus discrepancies of a purely lexical nature - this or that spelling of Greek words - discrepancies due to obvious scribal errors and some other minor variations of the text). 3) The construction of the apparatus is the most convenient for the reader, namely: first, the commented fragment of the text (original and translation) is copied in the device with a list of evidence that supports the reading accepted in the text, then through the vertical line - discrepancies (also with translation) with the corresponding list of evidence; the evidence mark in parentheses indicates the uncertainty of the given reading in the given evidence. In the case of a quote from the Bible in the text of 1 Klim. the biblical reference means that the Greek. the text of the Bible corresponds to this reading. If discrepancies are present only in ancient translations (Latin, Syriac, Coptic), a Russian translation is given as a reading option, after which, as a rule, follows Greek. the text in brackets after the equal sign "=" - this means that the Greek. the text has been restored according to these readings (for the Latin translation, after its reduction L, the Latin text is given in brackets).
All information about discrepancies is taken from the apparatus of the indicated 5 editions; in particular, the Russian translation of the Syriac and Coptic readings is made from the Greek. (reconstructed), in comparison with English, French. and German. translations of these readings in the apparatus of the indicated editions (for reading the Syriac and Coptic translations, the notes of their publishers are taken into account - see the corresponding editions in the abbreviations).
So, the apparatus gives discrepancies in manuscripts and ancient translations with their designations A, H, L, S, C (see abbreviations) and the indicated editions with their designations Lightfoot, Jaubert, Schneider, Ehrman and Holmes (only in case of disagreement between them ).
Date, late 1st century. Not necessarily Clement of Rome. I transfer it to apocrypha close to Christianity, since the separation of Christ from God exists within certain limits.
Interesting points:
Chapter 25
7 The priests examine the annals, and find that she appeared at the completion of five hundred years.
The so-called first epistle of Clement of Rome to the Corinthian Christians takes us into a completely different circle of views and concepts compared to the epistle of Barnabas: instead of knowledge (gnosis), occupied with allegorical and mysterious, often arbitrary explanations of sayings, events and institutions of the Old Testament in relation to the revelation of the New Testament, that reminds us of Alexandria - in the message of Clement we see the practical clarity and prudence of the Roman mind. This epistle, in which, however, the name of Clement is not given anywhere, is written on behalf of the Roman Church to the Corinthian Church: and here lies the high historical significance of this epistle. Two great Churches enter into intercourse with each other - the Church of the capital of the whole world and the main Church of the Hellenic people. The Church of Corinth, for which internal divisions and discords caused so much anxiety to its founder, the Apostle Paul, and aroused his paternal love and care, and here again, due to its Hellenic mobility, it appears to us drawn into a whirlpool of internal strife and self-willed movement against the church order and hierarchy. The Roman Church, calm within, comes to the aid of the Corinthian with a fraternal but firm word of exhortation to point out to those who have gone astray the true order and lawfulness of the church structure. It is clear how important the message of Clement is for the knowledge of ancient church relations.
The reason for writing the epistle we are considering, as Irenaeus testifies and is clear from its content, was the divisions and disputes that arose in the Corinthian Church. Even in the time of the apostles, as can be seen from the 1st Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians, a false direction appeared in this Church of some of its members, exalted by their wisdom, too highly appreciating extraordinary gifts of spiritual and external exploits of piety at the expense of true Christian love and holiness, prone to contention and ecclesiastical anarchy. A similar phenomenon occurred among the Corinthian Christians and at another time after the apostles. The then division was adjacent to the names of the two apostles: Peter and Paul, and the husband of the apostolic Apollos. Now, the perpetrators of the Corinthian disorganization were a few impudent and arrogant people (ch. 1), one or two persons (ch. 47), who carried away the society with them and became leaders of indignation and division (ch. 51). Their distinctive moral feature is pride, exalted by wisdom, which shone in words (ch. 21), but was alien to good deeds (ch. 38). True, at the same time they were, or at least they were joined by people who stood out for their outward purity of life and especially holiness according to the flesh (chap. 48), but they were not imbued with true love, which acts with humility and seeks common good, but not his. Proud of their advantages in understanding and outward purity of life, out of envy and a false understanding of Christian freedom, they rebelled against a certain order of worship and the legally established authority of the church. Having formed a strong party, they extended their insolence to the point that they lowered from church positions some respected primates of the Church, appointed by the apostles themselves or their successors. Self-will or anarchy led to that. that the dishonest rebelled against the venerable, the inglorious against the glorious, the foolish against the wise, the young against the elders (ch. 3). The rumor of such disastrous disorder reached Rome, where even among the pagans the name of Christ was subjected to mockery (ch. 47).
The Roman Church, as seen from ch. 1 and 47, without any outward challenge, voluntarily took part in the sad state of the Corinthian Church. Despite the fact that she was oppressed from the outside (ch. 1), she herself was alien to such internal divisions. But the stronger the spirit of ecclesiastical order dominated in her, the more vividly, in the spirit of brotherly love, she must have felt its disorder in the famous Church of Corinth. Her participation in the position of the main Hellenic Church is all the more pure because she rendered it without any claim of power or primacy. As soon as the external disasters that happened to the Roman Church subsided, she hastened to give the Corinthian Church fraternal help with her message, which was sent with three Roman Christians - Claudius Ephebus, Valerius Viton and Fortunatus (ch. 59).
The epistle is written in Greek and consists of 59 chapters. Its content is fully consistent with the circumstances that caused it. After the usual salutation, the epistle begins with a statement of the occasion on which it was written, and with praise of the former manners of the Corinthians, in contrast to their present disorganization (ch. 1-3). At the same time, it presents a beautiful depiction of the life of ancient Christians. “All of you were humble and a stranger to vanity, loved to obey rather than command, and to give than to receive. Satisfied with what God gave you on the path of earthly life, and carefully listening to His words, you kept them in the depths of your heart, and His sufferings were before your eyes. Thus, deep and beautiful peace and an insatiable striving to do good were granted to all: and there was a complete outpouring of the Holy Spirit on all ... Day and night, your feat was the care of all the brotherhood, so that the number of God's chosen ones would be saved complacently and in one mind. Any rebellion and division was disgusting for you.” Then, bearing in mind the reconciliation of the Corinthians and the restoration of ecclesiastical unity, the author prefaces his discussion of the main subject of the epistle with general Christian admonitions, so that the epistle is decomposed into two parts. The first (chapter 4-36) sets out moral instructions that should have disposed the Corinthians to eliminate the internal foundations of the discord that had occurred among them. The author finds the source of the Corinthian disorder in envy, which has produced so much evil in the world; This is evidenced by the Old Testament righteous (Abel, Jacob, etc.) and the closest ascetics of the faith - the Apostles Peter and Paul, who died as martyrs (Ch. 6). Therefore, he admonishes the Corinthians to repentance and obedience (ch. 7-12), to humility (ch. 13-18), to peace and harmony (ch. 19-21), backing up his exhortations with numerous examples of Old Testament history, the harmony of visible nature and example of Jesus Christ himself. “The scepter of the majesty of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, did not come in a splendor and glory, although he could, but humbly, as the Holy Spirit said about Him (through the prophet Isaiah, 53). Let us revere our Lord Jesus Christ, whose blood is given for us, let us honor our primates, respect the presbyters (ch. 21).” Further, pointing to the benefits of the Creator, he represents the faithfulness of God in the promises and especially dwells on the resurrection of the dead, which is proved by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the omnipotence of God, examples of visible nature and the legend of the Phoenix bird (22-30). So let us seek the blessing of God, and see what paths lead to it (31). The Old Testament righteous were glorified not by themselves and not by their deeds, or by the righteousness of the actions they performed, but by the will of God. So also we, called according to His will in Christ Jesus, are not justified by ourselves and not by our own wisdom, or understanding, or piety, or works, but by faith, through which the Almighty God has justified from time immemorial (ch. 32). What are we to do? Is it possible to lag behind virtue and love? Far from it; on the contrary, let us strive with all our might to do every good deed. May our mind be established in faith in God and let us seek what pleases Him (ch. 33-35). This is the way in which we acquire our salvation - Jesus Christ, the high priest of our victims, our intercessor and helper in our weakness. Through him we look to the heights of the heavens; through him the eyes of our hearts were opened; through him the Lord was pleased that we should taste immortal knowledge. He is the radiance of His majesty, the Son of God at the right hand of the Father (ch. 36).
After general moral exhortations, the author of the Epistle to the Corinthians, by means of the idea that Christians are the soldiers of Christ, finally move on to the particular issue of his epistle - to the Corinthian question of the church structure. This constitutes the second part of the epistle; and here, as in his previous reasoning, descending from the general to the particular, the writer first offers a doctrine of the church structure in general (37-44 ch.) and then talks about the affairs of the Corinthian Church (45-57 ch.).
The need for a certain order in the Christian Church is revealed in the epistle by pointing to the discipline of the Roman legions and the structure of the human body, especially to the order of Old Testament worship established by God Himself. “Let's look at the obedience of soldiers to their commanders, at the various ranks of leaders, commanders of thousands, etc., who all carry out the orders of the king and commanders; and from this we can know that neither the great are without the small; neither the small without the great can exist, and only their mutual connection is beneficial. And in the human body, the head and legs mean nothing without each other, and the smallest members are necessary and useful for the whole body, so that it is preserved only by the agreement of all its individual parts (ch. 37). Therefore, let the body of those who believe in Christ be healthy, and each one obey the other, in accordance with the degree in which he is placed by a special gift (carisma) of God, remembering that for everything we must thank God (chap. 38), and not be exalted in their own thoughts (ch. 39), it is given to Christinas to penetrate into the depths of divine knowledge (gnwsiV), that is, into the spiritual meaning of the Old Testament law, which figuratively pointed to the revelation of the New Testament, - and they must do everything that the Lord commanded to do in order certain times. And He Himself in the Old Testament established certain times and hours for sacrifices and sacred actions (leitourgiai) and also where and through whom these actions should be performed. The high priest is given his office (leitourgia), the priests are assigned their work (topoV), and their offices (diakoniai) are assigned to the Levites, the worldly man (laikoV) is bound by precepts for the people (ch. 40). Also, sacrifices are not offered everywhere, but only in Jerusalem and there not in every place, but in front of the temple on the altar, after the sacrifice has been examined by the high priest and the above-mentioned ministers. And in Christianity there is the same church order, which originates from God and Christ, and its violation is the more dangerous for Christians, the more knowledge is given to them in comparison with the religion of the Old Testament (ch. 41). The apostles were sent to preach the gospel of Christ, just as Christ himself was sent from God: both were in order by the will of God. As a result of this commission, the apostles, completely convinced through the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ and confirmed in the faith by the Word of God, with the fullness of the Holy Spirit, went to proclaim the coming kingdom of God. Preaching in various countries and cities, they appointed the first-born (from those who were converted), according to a spiritual test, to be bishops and deacons for future believers (42 ch. ); and in this case, they did not introduce any new order, but only fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah (Isaiah 60:17) and followed the Old Testament prototype given by Moses (Numbers 17). Moreover, the apostles, knowing from Christ that there would be contention over the episcopacy, not only appointed the above-mentioned bishops and deacons, but also gave the commandment that when some were asleep, other tested men would take over their ministry. Thus, the apostles established the uninterrupted existence of the rank of primates of the Church, independent of the change of persons. “Therefore, it is unjust to deprive those who were appointed by the apostles themselves or after them by other highly respected men, and who served the flock of Christ irreproachably, with humility, meekly and blamelessly, and, moreover, in the course of a long time received approval from everyone. It will not be a small sin if we deprive those who bring gifts without reproach and holiness of their episcopacy. Blessed are the presbyters who preceded us, who were released from the body after a prolific and perfect life: they have nothing to fear, so that someone could overthrow them from their place. And this really happened in Corinth (ch. 43 and 44).
Turning to the affairs of the Corinthians, the author of the epistle tries to restore in them the love that is the true sign of the Christian life, and with the greatest regret describes the Corinthian schism. “Why do you have strife, anger, disagreements, divisions, war? Do we not have one God and one Christ? Is there not one Spirit of grace poured out on us, and is there not one calling in Christ? - Why do we tear and tear apart the members of Christ, rebel against our own body, and reach such madness that we forget that we are each other's members? (46 ch.) A shameful, and extremely shameful and unworthy deed of Christian life is heard: the firmest and most ancient Church of Corinth, because of one or two people, rebelled against the presbyters ”(47 ch.). This temptation, the rumor of which has penetrated even to non-Christians and given a reason to desecrate the name of the Lord, should be stopped as soon as possible and with tears beg God for forgiveness and restoration of brotherly love. “If anyone is steadfast in faith, or is able to offer the highest knowledge, or is wise in discussing speeches, or is pure in his deeds, much more should he humble himself and seek the common good, and not his own (ch. 48). Whoever has love in Christ also keeps the commandments of Christ. Who can explain the union of God's love? Who can, as it should, express the greatness of His goodness? The height to which love can be raised is unspeakable. Love unites us with God, love covers many sins, love accepts everything, endures everything. There is nothing low or haughty in love, love does not allow any division or revolt, love does everything in harmony. By love, all God's chosen ones have reached perfection; without love there is nothing pleasing to God. The Lord took us in love; according to the love that he had for us, Christ our Lord gave his blood for us, according to the will of God, and his flesh for our flesh, and his life for our souls (ch. 49). So great and wondrous is love, so inexpressible is its perfection! Who can have it if God Himself does not deign it? So, let us beseech Him that we may live in love, blamelessly, without human separation” (ch. 50). Then the perpetrators of the indignation are persuaded to confess their sins and end the strife. (51-53 ch.). “Who among you is noble, merciful, full of love, let him say: if there is rebellion, strife and division because of me, then I will retire, anywhere, and do everything that the people command, if only the flock of Christ was in peace with the set presbyters” (ch. 54–55). “Let us also intercede for those who are in sin, so that meekness and humility would be granted to them, so that they would obey not us, but the will of God” (56 ch. ). After an appeal to those who initiated the indignation, so that they submit to the presbyters, leaving the arrogant audacity of the tongue (chap. 57), the epistle ends with a prayer for the grace of God for all who call on Him, with a request to send them soon with news of the effect of the epistle and a Christian blessing (chap. 59) .
This epistle, as we said, was written on behalf of the Roman Church. Who is the writer of it, it is not visible either in the welcome formula or in other places. That he was one of the primates of the Church can hardly be doubted (see ch. 40, 45). Some, (for example, Tilmon) thought to see in him a Jew by origin, based on the fact that he called Abraham and Jacob our fathers (ch. 4, 31). But such expressions are quite appropriate in the mouth of a Christian from the Gentiles, when St. Paul calls Abraham the father of believers. Well acquainted with the Old Testament scripture. the author of the epistle is no stranger to knowledge in Greek mythology, as well as in the natural sciences (ch. 6, 20, 25, 55). An indication, for example, of the Roman military discipline and the name of our leaders (ch. 47) gave grounds for the conjecture that he was a Roman.
Ancient tradition, preserved by church writers, unanimously names the author of this epistle as Clement, Bishop of Rome. Egesippus (from the 2nd half of the 2nd century), according to Eusebius (Hist. eccl. III. 16); knew and spoke in his memoirs about the letter of Clement to the Corinthians about their disorder; Unfortunately, Eusebius does not clearly convey his words. For this he quotes an important passage from the letter of Dionysius, Bishop of Corinth, to the Roman Christians (c. 168-176). “Today, he writes, we celebrated the holy day of the Lord and read your epistle, which we will always read for our instruction, as well as the first written by Clement” (Eusebius. Hist. eccl. IV. 23). Irenaeus, showing the order of the first Roman bishops, speaks of Clement as follows: “Under this Clement, when no small indignation arose between the Corinthian brethren, the Roman Church sent an excellent scripture to the Corinthians, convincing them to the world and renewing their faith and tradition, which they had recently received from apostles” (Irenaeus. Adv. haeres. III. 3). Clement of Alexandria, calling Clement the Roman apostle, quote from his epistle to the Corinthians excerpts from 18 chapters of it. Origen also repeatedly mentions the Roman Clement and his epistle: his special attention was drawn to a remarkable passage from the Epistle of Clement (chap. 20), which speaks of the worlds beyond the ocean. Eusebius, calling the epistle "great and wonderful", testifies that it was a generally recognized creation of Clement, and in many churches it was read publicly both before and in his time (Hist. eccl. III. 16). Epiphanius of Cyprus (†403) distinguishes between the authentic and “readable letters of Clement in the holy churches” from the inauthentic “travels” of Peter, issued under his name, and cites the fifth chapter from his 1st epistle (Epiph. Adv. haeres. XXVI, 6) . Finally, Jerome (†420) says of Clement that on behalf of the Roman Church he wrote a very useful epistle to the Corinthian Church, which is read publicly in some churches. Without citing other evidence found in Cyril of Jerusalem, in the canons of the Apostles, in Patriarch Photius, and others, we will say that not a single scripture from the post-Apostolic age has been attested by such ancient and numerous testimonies of church writers. The doubts that have arisen in recent times about its authenticity have been thoroughly reflected by scholars of the Catholic as well as the Protestant world. Schwegler's last attempt to refute the origin of the message from Clement of Rome met with a decisive contradiction from Bunsen, Richl Schenkel and others. The impartial, but too cautious Gilgenfeld, due to the contradictory traditions about whose disciple was Clement of Rome and who was appointed bishop, not daring to attribute the epistles to Clement, to whose name it itself has no claim, however, comes to the conclusion that the writer of the epistle belongs to the heads of the Roman Church at the end of the first century. If, therefore, the main essence of the matter is recognized, the origin of the epistle in Rome in the first century of Christianity from one of the representatives of the Church, then it is unfair to go against such early and strong evidence of tradition about Clement as the writer of that epistle. And in learned criticism, as well as in legal court, summum jus summa injuria.
The name of Clement of Rome belongs to the most glorious and respected names of Christian antiquity. This is proved by the many writings published under his name. In addition to the first epistle to the Corinthians and an incomplete work called the second epistle, he was credited with an exposition of the rules of St. apostles and apostolic decrees. Five letters appeared with his name in false Isidore decretals. To him, Epiphanius and Jerome erected epistles about virginity, recently found and published. All this testifies to the actual authorship of Clement of Rome and its important historical significance. And it is remarkable that his name has become, as it were, a collective name for writings that mainly relate to church organization and discipline. In addition, the personality of Clement was a favorite subject of the apocryphal literature of the first centuries of Christianity, the monuments of which remain for us the so-called "Meetings (Recognitiones)" and the false Clementine "Conversations". Unfortunately, history has preserved very meager and vague news about Clement. And in the legends of the Apocrypha we have named, fiction dominates to such an extent that it is difficult and almost impossible to penetrate into the historical circumstances of the life of the real Clement. In them, he appears as a Roman from the royal family, who received an excellent education in the sciences, the preaching of St. Peter converted to Christianity, his constant companion, whom, finally, before his death in Rome, Peter makes his successor in the rank of bishop of Rome. But, according to scientists, the features of the consul Flavius Clement, whom his relative Emperor Domitian executed (96) for his conversion to Christianity, are mixed here with the features of Clement the Bishop of Rome, who is given only as a disciple of St. Peter. Meanwhile, Origen and Eusebius (Hist. eccl. III. 4, 15) recognize Clement as an employee of the Apostle Paul, whom, along with others, their names are written in the books of animals, the apostle mentions in an epistle to the Philippians (Philippians 4: 3). Irenaeus says about Clement that he saw the blessed apostles (of course, Peter and Paul, who founded the Roman Church) and dealt with them, listened to their preaching, and their tradition was before his eyes.
There is no doubt that Clement was a bishop of Rome. But in various traditions preserved in the writings of church writers and other written monuments of antiquity, hesitation and uncertainty are found in showing the place he occupied in the succession of the most ancient bishops of Rome. The false Clementine "Conversations" and "Meetings" present Clement as the immediate successor of St. Peter, appointed Bishop of Rome by him. Tertullian points to Clement as the bishop of Rome appointed by Peter (Clementem a Petro ordinatum). According to Jerome, very many of the Latins revered Clement as the second bishop of Rome after ap. Peter. According to others, Bishop Linus preceded him, and Irenaeus, according to whom Eusebius and Jerome speak in his catalog of church writers, testifies that after Linus, Anaclet (or Cletus) was still bishop, after whom Clement entered into government of the church. As a result of such a disagreement of traditions, even the ancients made attempts to reconcile them. So Rufinus, in the preface to his Latin translation of the Meeting, expresses the following consideration: “Linus and Cletus were bishops in Rome, although before Clement, but during the life of Peter, so that they performed the work of episcopacy, and he himself performed the office of apostleship, as this he did in Caesarea, where he himself was and, however, had the bishop Zacchaeus appointed by him; thus, both may seem fair: both the fact that they (Lin and Clet) are considered bishops before Clement, and the fact that Clement received the bishopric after the death of Peter. Epiphanius of Cyprus thinks that Clement, appointed by Peter, for the sake of peace ceded the bishopric to Linus, followed by Cletus, and after their death Clement entered the bishopric. In the decrees of the apostles (VII, 4) it is said on behalf of Peter that Lin was left the first bishop from ap. Paul, and after the death of Lin was ordained ap. Peter Clement.
It is difficult at present to ascertain decisively any definite order of the first Roman bishops, but the tradition of Irenaeus seems more probable; according to him, the historical testimony of Eusebius, who used the notes of Egesippus, who, while in Rome, compiled a list of the succession of bishops to Aniceta (Eusebius. Hist. eccl. IV. 22). If Clement really occupied the first place, as the immediate successor of Peter, it would be inexplicable how these little-known names of Linus and Anacleta could fall into the ranks of his predecessors; meanwhile, it would be easy to understand how Clement, a widely known and respected disciple of the apostles, in the course of time could supplant the names of those bishops in the Latin tradition. In Rome, where thousands of Jews lived, a significant part of the Church was Judeo-Christians, who illegally appropriated the name of the great apostle Peter, as the head of their party. The first primates of the Roman Church could not have thought of a separation between Peter and the apostle of the tongues, Paul: the agreement of doctrine and the common activity and sufferings of Peter and Paul in Rome affirmed them in inseparable remembrance and respect for both chief apostles. But among the Roman believers there were quite a few Judeo-Christians who were exclusively devoted to St. Peter with disdain and even a clear dislike for the Apostle of tongues. This party, as can be seen from the pseudo-Clementine “Conversations” and “Meetings”, wanted to put the glorious Clement in the closest direct connection with the Apostle. Peter both in relation to the doctrine and to the succession of the episcopal dignity. In this regard, later, under the influence of the historical memories of pagan Rome, little by little the Roman Catholic idea of the bishop of Rome and the tradition of the administration of St. Peter by the Roman Church as the first bishop, who was allegedly succeeded directly by Clement.
Eusebius says that Clement's episcopal ministry lasted 9 years from AD 92 to 101. But history does not report anything reliable about his activities at this time, except for participation in the affairs of the Corinthian Church. Irenaeus and Eusebius do not talk about the martyrdom of Clement, but Rufinus and Pope Zosimus call him a martyr, and in later times there were acts of his martyrdom, from which it is clear that Clement, who was exiled under the emperor Trajan for the name of Christ to Tauric Chersonesus, turned preaching and miracles many pagans to Christ, and for that, at the command of the emperor, he was thrown into the sea with a stone around his neck.
It is not difficult to determine the time of writing the Clementine Epistle if we pay attention to the indications contained in it in connection with external historical evidence. Quite some time had already passed after the founding of the Corinthian Church, so that the author could call it the ancient Church, and the first letter of Paul to the Corinthians, regarding their divisions, can be attributed to the beginning of the gospel preaching (chap. 47). Not only did the two great apostles Peter and Paul die (chap. 5), but also some who were placed by them in the service of the Church; and of the primates of the Church still living, some, already appointed as apostolic successors, were in their ministry for a long time (chap. 44). Such signs indicate that the epistle of Clement was written long after Nero's persecution, during which the apostles Peter and Paul suffered (64 or 67); and if the author calls them the closest ascetics of faith and patience, then this should be understood in relation to ancient examples borrowed from the Old Testament history (ch. 5). On the other hand, the author in the 1st ch. speaks of the sudden and successive calamities of the Roman Church. Most scholars date this circumstance to the reign of Domitian (81-96), during which oppression and execution again befell Christians, although this persecution was inferior to Nero's in its cruelty. This is also consistent with the testimony of Eusebius cited above about the time of the bishopric of Clement. According to others, the epistle of Clement was written before the destruction of the Jerusalem temple (70), about 68 years. Its main foundation is formed by the words of the epistle (ch. 40 and 41), in which the temple of Jerusalem and the divine services established in it are presented as if they exist. “Not everywhere, writes Clement, are sacrifices made ... but only in Jerusalem, and there not in every place, but in front of the temple on the altar, after the sacrifice being offered will be examined by the high priest and the ministers mentioned above.” But from such a mode of expression it is impossible to conclude about the external existence of Jewish worship in Jerusalem. Clement points to Jewish worship in general in order to apply the commandment of God expressed in it about church order to the life of the Christian Church. This commandment mattered even though the outer temple had long since been destroyed, just as the election of the Israelite people (ch. 29) passed to the Christian people. A similar way of expression is found in Josephus Flavius, who spoke after the destruction of Jerusalem about the institutions of the Old Testament worship of God, as still existing, of course, in relation to the immutable law, as well as among Christian writers in the epistle to Diognetus and in Justin the Martyr. Thus, the writing of the Clementine Epistle can be more thoroughly believed in the reign of Domitian, no later than 96 AD.
From the above testimonies about the author of the epistle, it is clear what fame and respect it enjoyed in Christian antiquity. The very first traces of his fame can be found in the letter of the apostolic husband (II century) Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna, to the Philippians: it so often coincides with the Clement Epistle both in thought and in expression that Gallandi and Hefele most likely assume that Polycarp had it and used it. In addition, in many churches from an early time it was read at public meetings of Christians.
This prominence of Clement's epistle continued until the sixth century. But later, in the troubled times of the Middle Ages, it was almost lost. From the time of Patriarch Photius until the 17th century, none of the learned theologians found it in ancient book depositories, and therefore it was considered lost. The first to find this precious monument of Christian antiquity was Patricius Junius, the librarian of the English king Charles I. Cyril Lucaris, the patriarch famous for learning, first of Alexandria, and then of Constantinople, brought with him from Alexandria a rich collection of books, and among them a very ancient code of the Bible, now called Alexandrian, and attributed by Tischendorf to the middle of the 5th century. Lucaris sent this manuscript as a gift (1628) to the King of England. At the end of it, after the Apocalypse, was the first epistle to the Corinthians and a fragment of the so-called second epistle of Clement; then came the book of psalms. Unfortunately, parchment sheets suffered a lot from moths and time: at the end of the message, one large sheet was missing, and in the text itself there was either no beginning or end of some words, and sometimes even whole words. The learned librarian Junius, with the greatest diligence, took up the jewel he had found; he parsed the text of the epistle, filled in the missing syllables and words, and published with notes and a Latin translation the first epistle, together with a fragment of the second, at Oxford (1633). Cotelier, in his edition with a new Latin translation, divided the text of the epistles into chapters (1672). Wotton reviewed the manuscript again, and, correcting the shortcomings of Juniev's reading, published the epistles in Cambridge, 1718. Finally, the newly revised and corrected epistles of Clement appeared in the edition of the writings of the apostolic men Jacobson, who was mainly followed by Hefele and Dressel.
1 The Church of God located in Rome, the Church of God located in Corinth, called, sanctified by the will of God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
2 May grace and peace be multiplied to you from Almighty God through Jesus Christ.
3 Sudden and one after another misfortunes and disasters that happened to us, brothers, that late, as we think, we turned our attention to matters disputed among you, beloved, and to indecent and alien to the chosen ones of God, a criminal and impious rebellion,
4 which a few arrogant and arrogant people have inflamed to such a frenzy that your honorable, glorious and most gracious name has been subjected to great reproach.
5 For who, who visited you, did not praise your faith, full of all virtues and firm, did not marvel at your sober and meek piety in Christ, did not exalt your great generosity in hospitality, did not glorify your perfect and faithful knowledge?
6 In everything you have acted impartially, walked in the commandments of God, obeying your leaders and giving due honor to the elders among you.
7 The young men were inspired with modesty and decency; wives were instructed to do everything with a blameless, honest and pure conscience, loving their husbands as they should,
8 And taught them that they should, without breaking the rule of obedience, decently dispose of household affairs, and conduct themselves in a completely chaste manner.
Chapter 2
1 All of you were humble and aloof from vanity, loving to obey rather than to command, and to give than to receive.
2 Being content with what God has given you for the way, and carefully listening to His words, you have kept them in the depths of your heart, and His sufferings were before your eyes.
3 Thus was given to all a deep and beautiful peace and an insatiable desire to do good: and there was a full outpouring of the Holy Spirit on all.
4 Full of holy desires, with sincere zeal and godly hope, you stretched out your hands to Almighty God and implored Him to be merciful if you unwittingly erred.
5 Day and night it was your struggle to take care of all the brotherhood, so that the number of His chosen ones would be saved in good nature and like-mindedness.
6 You were sincere, pure-hearted, and remembered no evil against one another.
7 Every rebellion and every division was disgusting to you.
8 You wept over the transgressions of your neighbors; their shortcomings were considered their own.
9 Were not weary of doing good, ready for every good work.
10 Being adorned with such a virtuous and honorable life, you did everything in the fear of the Lord: His decrees and commandments were written on the tablets of your heart.
Chapter 3
1 All glory and breadth was given to you, and it was fulfilled that it is written: "He ate and drank, grew fat and grew fat, and his beloved became disobedient."
2 And hence jealousy and envy, enmity and strife, persecution and rebellion, war and captivity.
3 Thus the wicked rose up against the venerable, the ignoble against the glorious, the foolish against the wise, the young against the stout.
4 Therefore righteousness and peace have departed, because everyone has left the fear of God, has become dull in his faith, does not walk in the rules of his commandments, and does not lead a life worthy of Christ,
5 but each followed his evil desires, allowing again lawless and ungodly envy, through which even death entered the world.
Chapter 4
1 For thus it is written: “And it came to pass after some days that Cain offered of the fruit of the ground an offering to God: and also Abel offered of the firstborn sheep, and of their fat;
2 And God looked upon Abel and upon his gifts; he did not look at Cain and at his victims.
3 And Cain was very sad, and his face fell.
4 And God said to Cain, Why have you become sad, and why has your face fallen? Have you not sinned if you have brought rightly, but wrongly distributed?
5 Calm down. His appeal to you and you will possess it.
6 And Cain said to his brother Abel, Let us go into the field;
7 And it came to pass, while they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and killed him."
8 You see, brethren, jealousy and envy have brought about fratricide.
9 Because of envy, our father Jacob fled from the presence of Esau his brother.
10 Envy was the reason that Joseph was persecuted to death and was subjected to slavery.
11 Envy forced Moses to flee from the presence of Pharaoh king of Egypt, when he heard from his fellow tribesman:
12 "Who made you a decider or a judge over us? Do you want to kill me, as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?"
13 Because of envy, Aaron and Miriam lived outside the camp.
14 The envy of Dathan and Aviron sent the living down to hell because they rebelled against Moses, the servant of God.
15 Because of envy, David not only suffered the hatred of foreigners, but was also persecuted from Saul king of Israel.
Chapter 5
1 But leaving the ancient examples, let's move on to the closest ascetics: let's take worthy examples of our generation.
2 Out of jealousy and envy, the greatest and righteous pillars were persecuted and killed. Let us present before our eyes the blessed apostles.
3 Peter, out of lawless envy, suffered not one, not two, but many sufferings, and having thus endured martyrdom, he departed to the proper place of glory.
4 Paul, because of envy, received the reward of patience: he was in chains seven times, he was cast out, he was stoned.
5 As a preacher in the East and West, he gained a noble reputation for his faith, because he taught the whole world the truth,
6 and went as far as the border of the West, and testified martyrically to the truth before the rulers.
7 So he moved out of the world, and moved into a holy place, becoming the greatest example of patience.
Chapter 6
1 To these men who lived a holy life, a great multitude of the elect were added,
2 who, because of envy, endured many reproach and torment, and left among us a fine example.
3 The women of Danaida and Dirk were persecuted by envy;
4 After enduring severe and terrible torments, they walked on the firm path of faith, and, being weak in body, received a glorious reward.
5 Envy separated wives from their husbands and perverted the words of our forefather Adam: "Behold now, bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh."
6 Envy and strife have overthrown great cities and utterly destroyed great nations.
Chapter 7
1 This, beloved, we write not only for your instruction, but for our own reminder;
2 because we are in the same race, and the same struggle is set before us.
3 Therefore, let us leave empty and vain cares, and turn to the glorious and venerable rule of our holy calling.
4 Let us look at what is good, whatever pleases our Creator.
5 Let us pay attention to the blood of Christ, and we will see how precious before God is His blood, which was shed for our salvation, and brought the grace of repentance to the whole world.
6 Let us go through all the generations and learn that the Lord in each generation graciously accepted the repentance of those who wished to turn to Him.
7 Noah preached repentance, and those who obeyed him were saved.
8 Jonah proclaimed destruction to the Ninevites, but they repented of their sins, propitiated God with their prayers and received salvation, although they were far from God.
Chapter 8
1 The servants of the grace of God, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, spoke of repentance;
2 and the Master of all things Himself spoke of repentance with an oath: “As I live, said the Lord, I do not want the death of a sinner, but repentance”;
3 and added the following beautiful thought: "House of Israel, turn from your wickedness."
4 "Say to the sons of my people, though your sins extend from earth to heaven, and though they be redder than scarlet and blacker than sackcloth,
5 but if you turn to Me with all your heart, and say: Father! then I will hear you as a holy people."
6 And in another place he says thus: “Wash and be clean; put away the wickedness of your souls before my eyes; depart from your evildoings;
7 Learn to do good, seek righteousness, deliver the offended, judge the orphan, justify the widow, and come and we will be judged, says the Lord:
8 And if your sins be as purple, I will make them as white as snow; and if they are like scarlet, I will make them white like wool; and if you are willing and obedient to Me, you will enjoy the good things of the earth;
9 But if you are not willing and do not listen to Me, then the sword will cut you off: for the mouth of the Lord has spoken."
10 So He wants to make all His beloved partakers of repentance, and confirmed this with His almighty will!
Chapter 9
1 Therefore, let us submit to His majestic and glorious will, and, leaving vain deeds, strife and envy, leading to death, let us fall down and turn to His mercy, imploring His mercy and goodness.
2 Let us keep our eyes on those who have served perfectly to His majestic glory.
3 Let us take Enoch, who, by his obedience, was found righteous, and reposed, and they did not see his death.
4 Noah was found faithful, and according to his ministry preached renewal to the world, and through him the Lord saved the animals, according to those that entered the ark.
Chapter 10
1 Abraham, who was called a friend, was found faithful in his obedience to the words of God.
2 Out of obedience he went out of his own country, and out of his kindred, and out of his father's house, to leave a small land, a weak kindred, and a small house; he inherited the promises of God.
3 For thus he said to him, “Go away from your country, and from your kindred, and from your father’s house, to a land that they will show you.
4 And I will make you a great nation; and I will bless you and exalt you your name and you will be blessed.
5 And I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse those who curse you, and in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.”
6 And again, after he had separated from Lot, God said to him, “Lift up your eyes, and look from the place where you are now, to the north and to the south, and to the east and to the sea: for all the land that you see, I will give you and the seed yours for a century.
7 And I will make your seed as the dust of the earth: if anyone can number the sand of the earth, then your seed will be numbered."
8 And it is also said: "God brought Abraham out and said to him, Look into the sky and count the stars, if you can number them: so shall thy seed be."
9 And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him for righteousness.
10 For faith and hospitality a son was given to him in his old age, but out of obedience he offered him as a sacrifice to God on one of the mountains shown by Him.
Chapter 11
1 Because of his hospitality and piety, Lot went out of Sodom unharmed, while all the surrounding country was punished with fire and brimstone:
2 and thus clearly showed the Lord that he does not leave those who trust in him; but those who deviate from Him are subjected to torment and punishment.
3 For his wife who went out with him, because she had other thoughts and did not agree with him, was set up as a sign:
4 She became a pillar of salt, and even to this day, so that everyone may know that those who have two minds and doubt the power of God serve as an example of judgment and a sign for all generations.
Chapter 12
1 For faith and hospitality, Rahab the harlot was saved.
2 When Joshua sent spies to Jericho, and the king of that land knew that they had come to spy on his land, he sent men to seize them, to seize them and put them to death.
3 But the hospitable Rahab, having received them, hid them on the top of her house in sheaves of flax.
4 And when they came to her from the king and said, The people have come to you, spies of our land, bring them out, thus the king commands,
5 then she answered: two people came to me, whom you are looking for, but they soon left, and now they are on their way; thus she did not show them to the messengers.
6 And to those men she said, I know for sure that the Lord your God will hand over this city to you; because fear and trembling from you attacked those who dwell in it. So when you manage to take him, keep me and my father's house.
7 And they said to her, It will be as you told us. As soon as you know about our approach, gather all your people under your roof and they will be safe, and whoever is found outside the house will perish.
8 Moreover, they gave her a sign to hang a red rope from her house, and by that they showed that to all who believe and hope in God there will be redemption through the blood of the Lord.
9 You see, beloved, in this woman was not only faith, but also prophecy.
Chapter 13
1 Therefore let us be humble, brethren, laying aside all arrogance, pride, foolishness, and anger, and let us do as it is written.
2 For the Holy Spirit says, “Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom, nor the strong in his strength, nor the rich in his riches,
3 But he who boasts, let him boast in the Lord, seeking him, and doing judgment and righteousness."
4 Let us especially remember the words of the Lord Yeshua, which He spoke, teaching meekness and generosity.
5 He thus said: "Have mercy, that you may have mercy; release, that you may be released;
6 as you do, so shall they do to you; as you give, so shall it be given to you;
7 as you judge, so you yourselves will be judged; as you condescend, so they will condescend to you; With what measure you use, it will be measured to you."
8 By this commandment and these promptings let us strengthen ourselves to walk in humility, in obedience to his holy precepts.
9 For the holy word says, "Whomever I look upon, only the meek and quiet one, who trembles at My words."
Chapter 14
1 Therefore, it is a righteous and holy thing, brethren, to obey God rather than to follow those who, in arrogance and arrogance, have become the forerunners of contemptible envy.
2 For not a little harm, but on the contrary, we will be exposed to great danger if we rashly give ourselves to the will of those people who incite us to strife and rebellion in order to lead us away from virtue.
3 Let us be kind to one another, as He who made us is merciful and good;
4 for it is written, "The good shall be the inhabitants of the earth, and the innocent shall remain upon it; but the wicked shall be cut off from it."
5 And again the Scripture says: “I saw the wicked man exalted and exalted like the cedars of Lebanon; and I passed by, and behold, he was no more; and I sought his place, and did not find it.
6 Keep your innocence and keep uprightness, because good consequences await a peaceful person."
Chapter 15
1 Let us therefore join those who keep peace with piety, and not those who hypocritically desire peace;
2 For it is said somewhere, "These people honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me."
3 And elsewhere: "With their lips they blessed, but with their hearts they cursed."
4 And it is also said, “They loved him with their mouth, and with their tongue they lied to him; but their heart was not right with him; and they were not faithful in his covenant.
5 Let us be dumb when we hear a deceitful mouth, and let the Lord cut off a deceitful mouth and a eloquent tongue, those who say, Let us magnify our tongue, our mouth is with us: who is our Lord?
6 For the calamity of the poor, and the sighing of the needy, now I will arise, says the Lord: I will serve them as salvation, and I will deal honestly with them.
Chapter 16
1 For Christ belongs to the humble, and not to those who exalt themselves above his flock.
2 The Rod of the Majesty of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, did not come in a splendor of splendor and arrogance, although he could, but humbly, as the Holy Spirit said about Him.
3 For he says, “Lord, who has believed our ears? And to whom has the hand of the Lord been revealed?
4 We proclaimed before him; He is like a little boy, like a root in a thirsty land, he has neither form nor glory.
5 And we saw him, and he had neither form nor beauty; but His appearance is dishonorable, humiliated more than the appearance of men: He is a man in an ulcer and suffering, able to bear the disease;
6 because his face was turned away, it was reviled and despised. He bears our sins and suffers for us;
7 but we thought that he was righteously subject to suffering, and plague, and torment;
8 but he was wounded for our sins, and tormented for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace is on him, through his wound we are healed.
9 We have all gone astray like sheep; man wandered in his way, and the Lord betrayed him for our sins.
10 And he, being tormented, does not open his mouth: as a sheep was led to the slaughter, and like a mute man before his shearers, so he does not open his mouth. For His humility, judgment was removed from Him.
11 Who will tell his generation when his life is taken from the earth? For the iniquity of my people He goes to death.
12 Therefore I will have mercy on the wicked for his tomb, and the rich for his death; for he did no iniquity, and no deceit was found in his mouth.
13 And it is pleasing to the Lord to cleanse him from the plague; if you give a sin offering, your soul will see a seed that will last.
14 And the Lord desires to save him from the suffering of his soul, to show him light, and to form him with understanding, and to justify the righteous one, who has ministered well to many; and He will bear their sins.
15 Therefore he will rule over many and divide the booty of the mighty, because his soul was delivered to death and was numbered among the wicked; and He took away the sins of many, and was delivered over for their iniquity."
16 And again He says: "I am a worm, and not a man, a reproach to men and a humiliation of men.
17 All who saw me mocked me, spoke with their lips and nodded their heads, saying, "He trusted in the Lord, let him deliver him and keep him, because he is pleased with him." -
18 Beloved, see what a model is given to us: for if the Lord has so humbled himself, what must we do, who through him have come under the yoke of his grace?
Chapter 17
1 Let us imitate those who wandered about in goatskins and sheepskins, preaching about the coming of Christ:
2 we mean the prophets Elijah, Elisha and Ezekiel, also those who received a beautiful testimony.
3 Abraham received a great testimony, and is called the friend of God: but, beholding the glory of God, he humbly says, "I am earth and ashes."
4 Further, it is also written about Job: "Job was just and blameless, true and godly, and kept away from all evil."
5 But he, judging himself, said: "No one is clean from filthiness, even if his life be one day."
6 Moses is called faithful in all his house, and God, through his ministry, brought judgment upon Egypt by means of torments and plagues:
7 But even he, so glorified, did not magnify himself, but when the Divine word came to him from the bush, he said: "Who am I that You send me? I am a stutterer and tongue-tied." And again he says: "I am steam from the boiler."
Chapter 18
1 What shall we say about the glorious David, about whom God said: "I found a man after my own heart, David the son of Jesse, I anointed him with eternal mercy"?
2 But he also says to God: “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your great mercy, and according to the multitude of your mercies cleanse my iniquity.
3 Still more, wash me from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin, for I know my iniquity and my sin is always before me.
4 I have sinned against you alone, and done evil before you, so that you may be justified in your words and overcome when they judge you.
5 For in iniquities I was conceived, and in sins my mother bore me.
6 You have loved the truth: the hidden secrets of your wisdom you have revealed to me.
7 Sprinkle me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
8 Give joy and gladness to my ears, and my broken bones will rejoice.
9 Turn your face away from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities.
10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit in my womb.
11 Cast me not away from Your presence, and take not Your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Give me the joy of your salvation, and strengthen me with the Spirit of God.
13 I will teach sinners your ways, and the wicked will turn to you.
14 Deliver me from the shedding of blood, O God, the God of my salvation. My tongue will sing of Your righteousness.
15 Lord, open my mouth, and my mouth will proclaim your praise.
16 If You wanted another sacrifice, I would offer; but burnt offerings are not pleasing to you.
17 A sacrifice to God is a contrite spirit; a contrite and humble heart God will not despise."
Chapter 19
1 The humility and obedient obedience of these men, who received such a glorious testimony from God Himself, made better not only us, but also former generations,
2 namely those who received His words with fear and sincerity.
3 Therefore, having before us so many great and glorious deeds, let us turn to the goal of the world, indicated to us from the beginning,
4 And looking to the Father and Creator of the whole world, let us look into His majestic and excellent gifts of the world and His benefits.
5 Let us look at Him with the mind and spiritual eyes, let us look at the long-suffering of His will, and let us consider how gentle He is to all His creation.
Chapter 20
1 The heavens, moving at his command, obey him in the world: both day and night make their course, not obstructing each other.
2 The sun and the faces of the stars, at His command, according to, without the slightest deviation, penetrate the paths assigned to them.
3 The fertile land, according to His will, at certain times produces abundant food for people, animals and all animals located on it, without slowing down or changing anything that was prescribed for them.
4 Unexplored and incomprehensible areas of the abyss and the underworld are held by the same decrees.
5 The boundless sea, according to His dispensation, combined into large masses of water, does not stand behind the barriers put to it, but does as He commanded.
6 For He said, "So far you shall reach, and your waves shall be broken in you."
7 The ocean, which is impassable for people, and the worlds beyond it, are controlled by the same commandments of the Lord.
8 The seasons - spring, summer, autumn and winter are peacefully replaced by one another.
9 Certain winds, each in its own time, perform their service without hindrance.
10 Inexhaustible springs, created for enjoyment and health, constantly deliver their moisture to people, which is necessary for their life.
11 Finally, the smallest animals peacefully and in harmony make cohabitation with each other.
12 All this commanded to be in harmony and peace, the great Creator and Lord of all,
13 Who does good to all, but especially to us, who have resorted to his mercy through our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom be glory and majesty forever and ever. Amen.
Chapter 21
1 Be careful, beloved, that so many of his benefits turn not into condemnation for all of us, if we, living worthy of him, do not with one accord do what is good and pleasing to him.
2 For it is said somewhere: "The Spirit of the Lord is a lamp that searches the secrets of the womb."
3 Let us consider how close He is to us, and that not one of our thoughts or meetings that we have is closed from Him.
4 Therefore, it behooves us not to deviate from His will: it is better for us to resist the foolish and foolish, those who exalt themselves and boast in the pomp of their words to people, rather than to God.
5 Let us revere the Lord Jesus Christ, whose blood is given for us;
6 to direct their wives to goodness, so that they are distinguished by a gracious disposition of chastity, show their pure disposition towards meekness, reveal the modesty of their tongue with silence, show their love not according to inclinations, but equal to all those who piously fear God.
7 Let your children be brought up as a Christian; let them learn how strong humility is before God, what pure love means before God, how wonderful and great the fear of God is and how saving it is for all who walk holy in it with a pure mind.
8 For He is the tester of our thoughts and desires: His breath is in us, and when He wills, He will take Him.
Chapter 22
1 All this is confirmed by the Christian faith. For Christ Himself, through the Holy Spirit, thus calls to us:
2 "Come, children, listen to Me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord.
3 Who is the man who desires life, who loves to see good days?
4 Keep your tongue from evil, and your mouth from speaking deceit.
5 Turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.
6 The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are on their prayer:
7 but on those who make an evil face of the Lord, to destroy their remembrance from the earth.
8 The righteous man called, and the Lord heard him and delivered him from all his troubles.
9 Many are the scourges of the sinner: but those who trust in the Lord will be surrounded by mercy.
Chapter 23
1 The merciful and beneficent Father is merciful to those who fear Him, and He willingly and kindly distributes His gifts to those who come to Him with a pure disposition.
2 Therefore let us not doubt, and let not our souls despair of His excellent and glorious gifts:
3 Let it be far from us what is said in the Scripture, where it says: "Wretched are those who are of two minds, who waver in their soul, and say:
4 This we heard in the time of our fathers, and behold, we have grown old, but nothing like this has happened to us.
5 Fools! Compare yourself to a tree, take a vine:
6 first she loses a leaf, then an offspring is formed, then a leaf, then a flower, and after that an unripe, finally a ripe grape.
7 See how in a short time the fruit of the tree reaches maturity.
8 Soon, truly and suddenly, the will of the Lord will be done, according to the testimony of the Scripture itself: "He will come quickly, and will not delay, and the Lord and the Holy One, whom you are waiting for, will come suddenly into his temple."
Chapter 24
1 Consider, beloved, how the Lord constantly shows us the future resurrection, which the Lord Jesus Christ made in the firstfruits, raising him from the dead.
2 Let's look, beloved, at the resurrection taking place at all times.
3 Day and night represent the resurrection to us: the night goes to sleep, the day rises; the day passes, the night comes.
4 Let us look at the fruits, how the seed is sown.
5 A sower went out and threw them into the ground, and the thrown seeds, which fell dry and naked on the ground, rotted;
6 but after this destruction, the great power of the Providence of the Lord resurrects them, and from one brings back many and produces fruit.
Chapter 25
1 Let us look at an extraordinary sign that happens in the eastern countries, that is, near Arabia.
2 There is a bird there called the Phoenix. She is born only one and lives for five hundred years.
3 Approaching her mortal destruction, she makes herself a nest out of libanum, myrrh, and other fragrances, into which, when her time is fulfilled, she enters and dies.
4 A worm is born from a rotting body, which, feeding on the moisture of a dead animal, fledges;
5 Then, having come to the fortress, he takes the nest in which the bones of his ancestor lie, and with this burden he makes his way from Arabia to Egypt, to a city called Heliopolis,
6 And when he arrives in the daytime, he places it on the altar of the sun in view of everyone, and thus departs back.
7 The priests examine the annals, and find that she appeared at the completion of five hundred years.
Chapter 26
1 Shall we, therefore, regard it as great and marvelous if the Creator of all things should raise up those who, in the hope of good faith, served Him holy,
2 when does he reveal to us his great promise by means of a bird?
3 For it is said somewhere: "And You will raise me up and I will praise You."
4 And again: "I fell asleep, and slept; I arose, because You are with me."
5 In the same way Job says, "And you will raise up this flesh of mine, which endures all these things."
Chapter 27
1 In this hope let our souls cling to Him who is faithful in promises and righteous in judgments.
2 He who commanded not to lie, much less he himself will not lie; for nothing is impossible for God: it is only impossible to lie.
3 Therefore, let his faith be kindled within us, and let us consider that all things are close to him.
4 By the word of his majesty he created all things, and by the word he can destroy them.
5 "Who will say to him, Why did he do it? or who will resist the mighty power of his."
6 When He pleases, He will do everything, and nothing that He has ordained will remain unfulfilled.
7 Everything is before Him, and nothing is hidden from His counsel.
8 "If the heavens proclaim the glory of God, then the firmament proclaims the work of his hands;
9 day to day vomits the word, and the night of the night returns knowledge.
10 And there is no word, no speech, the sounds of which are not heard."
Chapter 28
1 Therefore, if God sees and hears everything, then let us fear Him, and let us leave unclean strivings for evil deeds, that we may be covered by His mercy from future judgments.
2 For where can any of us flee from his mighty hand? What world will accept the one who fled from Him?
3 For the Scripture says somewhere, “Where can I go, and where can I hide myself from Your presence?
4 If I ascend to heaven, You are there; if I go to the ends of the earth, and there is thy right hand; if I dwell in the abyss, and your Spirit is there."
5 Where, then, can anyone go, or where can he flee from Him who comprehends everything?
Chapter 29
1 Let us therefore draw near to Him in holiness of soul, raising our hands clean and undefiled to Him,
2 and loving our meek and merciful Father, who has chosen us to be his own;
3 for thus it is written: "When the Most High divided the nations, when he divided the sons of Adam, he set the limits of the nations according to the number of the angels of God:
4 And his people Jacob became part of the Lord, Israel became the boundary of his inheritance."
5 And in another place it says, “Behold, the Lord chooses for himself a people from among the nations, as a man takes the firstfruits from his threshing floor, and from that people the holy of holies will come forth.”
Chapter 30
1 Therefore, being the portion of the Holy One, let us do everything pertaining to holiness,
2 running away from slander, unclean and vicious relationships, drunkenness, passion for innovation,
3 low desires, vile adultery and vile pride.
4 For it is said, "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble."
5 Let us then join those to whom God has given grace.
6 Let us put on like-mindedness, let us be humble, temperate, far from all slander and slander, justifying ourselves by deeds and not by words.
7 For it is said: "Whoever speaks much must also listen in his turn; or will he who speaks much be righteous? Blessed is he who is born of a woman, short-lived.
8 Let our praise be with God, and not from ourselves; God hates those who praise themselves.
9 Let the testimony of our good conduct be given from others, as it was given to our righteous fathers.
10 Insolence, arrogance and insolence are characteristic of the damned from God; temperance, humility and meekness among the blessed of God.
Chapter 31
1 So let us seek His blessing, and see what ways lead to blessing. Let's remember what happened from the beginning.
2 Why was our father Abraham blessed? Is it not for the fact that according to his faith he did justice and truth?
3 Isaac, knowing the future with certainty, willingly offered himself up.
4 Jacob, in humility, left his land because of his brother, and went to Laban and ministered; and the twelve tribes of Israel were given to him.
Chapter 32
1 If anyone considers everything in detail, he will know the greatness of the gifts given from God.
2 From Jacob are all the priests and Levites who serve at the altar of God.
3 From him is the Lord Jesus according to the flesh: from him are kings, rulers, leaders through Judah;
4 and his other tribes in no small glory, as God promised: "Your seed will be like the stars of heaven."
5 And they were all glorified and exalted, not by themselves, and not by their deeds, and not by the righteousness of the actions they did, but by the will of God.
6 So also we, being called according to His will in Christ Jesus, are not justified by ourselves, nor by our own wisdom, or understanding, or godliness, or works that we do in holiness of heart,
7 but by faith, which the Almighty God has justified all from the beginning. To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen.
Chapter 33
1 So what shall we do, brethren? Should we lag behind virtue and love? – Far from it, God forbid that this should happen to us;
2 On the contrary, with all our effort and readiness, let us hasten to do a good deed.
3 For the Creator and Master of all things rejoices in His works.
4 He established the heavens with his supreme power, and adorned them with his incomprehensible wisdom;
5 He separated the earth from the waters surrounding it, and established His will on the solid foundation,
6 and commanded by his authority that it should be an animal that walks on it.
7 He also created the sea and the animals in it, and protected it with His might.
8 Above all this, with holy and pure hands, He formed the most excellent and most excellent being, man, the mark of His image.
9 For thus says God: "Let us make man in our image and likeness. And God created man, male and female he created them."
10 Having done all this, He approved and blessed, and said, "Grow and multiply."
11 Let us also know that all the righteous are adorned with good works; and the Lord Himself rejoiced, having adorned Himself with works.
12 Having such an example, let us follow His will without laziness, and with all our strength let us do the work of righteousness.
Chapter 34
1 A good worker boldly receives bread for his labor; the lazy and careless one does not even dare to look at the one who gave him a job.
2 And we must be zealous in doing good, for everything is from Him.
3 For he prophesies to us, "Behold the Lord, and his reward is before him, to render to each according to his work."
4 Thus he admonishes us to turn to him with all our heart, and in no good deed be careless and negligent;
5 In him let our praise and hope be; Let us submit to His will.
6 Let us think of all the multitude of His angels, how they stand before Him and do His will.
7 For the Scripture says: "Darknesses stood before him, and thousands upon thousands served him, and cried out, Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; all creation is full of his glory."
8 So we too, in a congregation of one mind, with one spirit, as if from the same mouth, will call upon Him without ceasing, that we may become partakers of His great and glorious promises.
9 For he says, “Eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and it has not entered into the heart of man what He has prepared for those who trust in Him.”
We focus on the critical edition of the "Epistle" of Clement in the book: Die Apostolischen Vuter / Hrsg. von J. A. Fischer. - Darmstadt, 1981. - S. 1-107. There are two monographs in Russian dedicated to St. Clement. The first is in the nature of a cursory and very superficial review: Petrushevsky P.P. St. Clement, Bishop of Rome. - Kyiv, 1897; the second work is more serious: Priselkov A. Review of the Epistles of St. Clement, ep. Roman to the Corinthians: Vol. I. Review of the first epistle. - St. Petersburg, 1888
Evidence about the life and works of St. Clement .
About St. We know very little about Clement. According to St. Irenaeus of Lyon, he was the third bishop of Rome (after Linus and Anaklitos), and St. Irenaeus speaks of him as "who saw the blessed Apostles and conversed with them, who still had the preaching of the Apostles in his ears and the tradition of them before his eyes."
(The work of St. Irenaeus is cited hereinafter according to the Russian translation: Irenaeus of Lyons, St. Five books against heresies. - M., 1868. - S. 276. In the future, the book is indicated by a Roman numeral, and the chapter is Arabic). According to Eusebius of Caesarea (Cherk. ist. III, 15 and 34), the episcopal ministry of Clement falls on 92-101 years. (Eusebius Pamphilus. Church History. - M., 1993. - S. 95, 112. Further, only the book (in Roman numerals), the chapter and the paragraph are indicated).
According to the Tradition, he died a martyr's death and it happened in Chersonese. The relics of the Roman bishop were opened by the holy first teachers of Slovenia Methodius and Cyril: they brought part of them as a gift to the Roman church, and the rest was transferred to Kyiv, where the relics were laid in the Church of the Tithes. The name of St. Clement has acquired a large number of legends, many of which date back to the apocryphal novel called "Pseudo-Clementines" (or simply "Clementines"), but these legends have no solid ground in a truly church Tradition.
Several works are attributed to St. Clement, but only his "Epistle to the Corinthians" (sometimes called the "First Epistle of St. Clement") is authentic. It has come down to us in two Greek manuscripts (5th and 11th centuries); there are several translations of this message into Latin (XI century). and Syriac (XII century). languages, as well as fragments of two Coptic translations (the manuscript of one dates from the 4th or 5th century). This epistle enjoyed great authority and was highly revered in the ancient Church: Clement of Alexandria ranked it among the New Testament books, and Eusebius of Caesarea reports that in his time the epistle of St. Clement was read in churches (probably during divine services). It dates quite accurately to 96-97. The Epistle shows us the holy author, whose worldview is saturated and permeated with the spirit of Holy Scripture - his St. Clement constantly quotes and deeply understands. Moreover, his quotations from the Old Testament clearly predominate over the New Testament ones, which is not surprising, because at that time the canon of the New Testament was only just going through the process of its formation. In any case, St. Clement twice refers to the sayings ("logia") of the Lord, drawing them from the oral Tradition (See: Koester H. Ancient Christian Gospels: Their History and Development. - Cambridge (Mass.), 1990. - P. 66-71). Turning to Holy Scripture, St. Clement unconditionally "recognized the higher origin" of it "both in individual terms and in its entirety." Therefore, "the teaching of St. Clement on the question of inspiration is the clearest and most distinct evidence of the Church's faith in the inspiration of Holy Scripture in the post-Apostolic age" (Leonardov D. The doctrine of the inspiration of the Holy Scriptures of the apostolic men // Faith and Reason. - 1898. - No. 3. - P. 293). At the same time, St. Clement was by no means averse to Hellenic education: some Stoic ideas clearly resonate with him (especially ch. 19-20 of the epistle). The immediate reason for writing the epistle was a rumor that had reached the Roman church about discord in the fraternal Corinthian community: according to St. Clement, a “rebellion” (στάσις) took place among the Corinthian Christians, which “a few impudent and arrogant people kindled to such madness that your honorable, glorious and for all lovable name (i.e. the name of Christians. - A. S.) was subjected to great reproach" (ch. 1). He goes on to say that "the dishonorable people rose up against the venerable, the inglorious against the glorious, the stupid against the wise, the young against the elders" (ch. 3). This phrase, especially the last words: οι νέοι επί τους πρεσβυτέρους, can be understood in a double sense - as "the revolt of the younger in age against the elders" and as "the rebellion of a certain part of the laity against the clergy." The two meanings are probably almost the same, but St. Clement all the same singles out the second one, for below he notes that "the firmest and most ancient church of Corinth, because of one or two people, rebelled against the presbyters" (ch. 47). Thus, the reason for the unrest in the Corinthian community did not have a serious dogmatic background: it was an ordinary schism (schism), at the origins of which there were only a few people, overwhelmed by pride and ambition. Therefore, to see in this schism a clash of "charismatic preachers with presbyters" (Popov I.V. Lecture notes on patrol. - Sergiev Posad, 1916. - P. 9) we have no good reason.
The teaching of St. Clement.
This schism served for St. Clement the reason for the presentation of some important points of the Christian doctrine, the basis of which is the dogma of the Holy Trinity. However, the triadology in the message is only outlined in the most general terms, but is not developed in detail. The mystery of intra-trinic Life and the relationship of the Divine Persons to each other are only assumed by St. Clement, but he does not dare to penetrate this mystery. The word God (o θεός) serves for him as a designation not of the Divine essence, but of the first Person of the Holy Trinity. The main emphasis in the message is placed on the saving outpouring of God's action on the world, i.e. on the mystery of the dispensation of God. Moreover, as St. Clement, all the Hypostases of the Holy Trinity participate in this Dispensation: God the Father has the will (θέλημα θεού) to arrange the Kingdom of God; The Son is the main instrument and focus of the economy of salvation, and the Holy Spirit is depicted as completeness(πληροφορία) grace-filled means leading to salvation, i.e. into the Kingdom of God. It is characteristic that the second Hypostasis of the Holy Trinity of St. Clement only once calls Son of God, although the idea of the divinity of Christ and His pre-existence is expressed by him quite clearly. However, the lack of a clear emphasis on the divinity of Christ makes St. Photius of Constantinople in his "Library" to note that in the message of St. Clement Our Lord Jesus Christ is called Bishop and Representativeο (Photius. Bibliotheque: Vol. 2 / Ed. par R. Henry. - Paris, 1960. - P. 99). The act of the birth of the Son, according to St. Clement, as it were, coincides with the decision of God the Father to save the human race, i.e. "sonship here is clearly timed to coincide with the moment of God's adoption of the human race in the person of Christ the Savior" (Pisarev L. I. Essays, p. 352). The incarnation is understood primarily as a fact humiliation(έταπεινοφρόνησεν) of the second Person of the Holy Trinity. The humanity of Christ is emphasized by St. Clement: He possesses and flesh(σαρξ), and soul(ψυχή); according to the flesh, the Lord descended from Abraham and, out of love for us, gave His blood for us. The role of the Holy Spirit is not clearly expressed in the theology of St. Clement, who calls Him source and outpouring the grace of God, and source prophetic inspiration about the mystery of redemption.
The dispensation of God, according to St. Clement, extends not only to humanity, but to the entire created world (See: Bumpus H. B. The Christological Awareness of Clement of Rome and Its Sources. - Cambridge (Mass.), 1972. - P. 126). God, being the Father and Creator of the world, poured out on him His blessings, which St. Clement calls "gifts of the world" (της ειρήνης). Therefore, order and order reign in the world ("cosmos"): "The heavens, moving by His order, peacefully (εν ειρήνη) obey Him; day and night make a course determined by them, without interfering with each other. The sun and the faces of the stars, at His command , according to and without the slightest deviation, they penetrate the paths assigned to them, "etc. Clement includes the "ico-comic" Christian worldview in the general context: the Creator and Lord of all things does good to all His creatures, but "there are infinitely many (ύπερεκπερισσως) of us who have resorted to His mercy through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Ch. 19-20). Thus, although the dispensation of God extends to the entire universe, it focuses primarily on man, as the crown of creation. Underlying St. Clement assumes the idea that, since the universal harmony is violated by the fall of man, the restoration of "deanery" in the universe also depends on the salvation of man. And this salvation, given by God to people through the Incarnation of the second Person of the Holy Trinity, is realized only in the Church and through the Church. Therefore, ecclesiology occupies one of the most central places in the message.
The leading leitmotif of this ecclesiology is again the idea of harmony, harmony and peace ("Eirene"). Church of St. Clement compares with a military unit, where "neither the great without the small, nor the small without the great can not exist. All are connected to each other (literally, "there is a certain mixture of all" - σύγκρασις τις εστίν εν πασιν) and this [comes great] benefit ." The second comparison given by St. Clement, this comparison with the body in the spirit of the ecclesiology of St. Apostle Paul: "A head without legs means nothing, just like legs without a head, and the smallest members in our body are necessary and useful for the whole body; they are all in agreement with each other (literally, "breathe together" - πάντα συνπνει) and with their harmonious submission they serve for the health of the whole body "(ch. 37). The harmonious dispensation of the Body of Christ is manifested first of all in the worship performed at certain times and hours; thanks to church worship, "the depths of divine knowledge" are revealed to us. The last phrase (τα βάθη της θειας γνώσεως) points to that tradition of Orthodox "gnosis," at the origins of which are Sts. Apostles John and Paul, and which then found its most clear forms in the Alexandrian school.
(Thus, although the term γνωσις itself does not appear in the Gospel of John, the doctrine of "knowledge" is here expressed by means of the verbs γινώσκειν and ειδέναι ("to know, to know"), constituting an essential feature of the entire theology of St. Evangelist. "Gnosis" is here the path to salvation and eternal life; "knowledge" is identical with "faith" (the verb "believe" - πιστευειν - is usually used as a synonym for the verb γινώσκειν), and such an identity "faith" - "knowledge" means union with God. See: Barret C K. The Gospel according to St. John: An Introduction with Commentary and Notes on the Greek Text - London, 1978. - P. 81-82, 162-163).
St. Clement, with this phrase, as it were, emphasizes one of the most essential moments of this "gnosis" - its ecclesiastical character, for without the Church, its sacraments and worship, true knowledge cannot exist.
The most important ecclesiological idea of the Epistle is the idea that the Church is not a human, but a Divine establishment. This is shown, according to St. Clement, first of all in the divine institution of the church hierarchy. This idea is clearly expressed in chapter 42: "The apostles were sent to preach to us the Gospel from our Lord Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ from God. Christ was sent from God, and the Apostles from Christ; both happened decently (εύτάκτως) according to the will of God So, having accepted the commandment and certified (πληροφορηθέντες) by the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, confirmed in the faith by the word of God, with the fullness (μετά πληροφορίας) of the Holy Spirit [the Apostles] went to proclaim the Kingdom of God. αυτών), after a test in the Spirit (δοκιμάσαντες τω πνεύματι - "having tested by the Spirit" or "after a spiritual test"), they appointed bishops and deacons for future believers. And this was not an innovation (ου καινως), for long before that it was written about bishops and deacons." And further St. Clement quotes Isa. 60:17, replacing in the text of the Septuagint άρχοντας (chiefs) with διακόνους (servants, deacons). Thus, he rather transparently hints at the fact that the Church has its origins in the Old Testament. Then he says: The apostles knew that "there would be contention about episcopal dignity" (έ"ρις έσται περί του ονόματος της επισκοπής), and therefore, possessing "perfect foreknowledge" (πρόγνωσιν... τελείαν), law (έπινομήν - "addition, appendix to the law"), so that after the death of these ministers "other experienced men take over their ministry." Such an appointment of new ministers should take place "with the consent of the whole Church" (συνευδοκησάσης της εκκλησίας πάσης) and, if their ministry goes on with humility, impeccably, quietly (ήσυχώς - peacefully) and receives approval from everyone, then such ministers cannot be deprived of episcopacy (ch. 44). Thus, according to St. Clement, the entire church hierarchy has not only divine, but also apostolic origin.In the act of ordination to church service, he distinguishes two main moments: the actual "ordination" (κατάστασις) and "approval" (συνευδόκησις); nie" (χειροτονεία - see Acts. 14:23), and the second is the active participation in this establishment of all the people of God, i.e. conciliar recognition.
The ecclesiastical hierarchy ensures the unity of the Church - an idea also of paramount importance for the ecclesiology of St. Clement. Moreover, he, preoccupied with schism in the Corinthian community, “is mainly engaged in explaining the external conditions necessary for this unity ... But, while depicting the importance and necessity of external unifying principles for the unity of the Church, Clement does not lose sight of the internal principles of this unity. ; they even constitute his initial point of view on the unity of the Church" (Sylvester (Malevansky), archim. Teaching about the Church in the first three centuries of Christianity: Stories, essay. - Kyiv, 1872. - P. 94). The constant presence of the Holy Spirit in the Church encourages her children to strive unceasingly towards holiness. Noting this, St. Clement refers to another essential property of the Church - her catholicity, "which he sees as existing in the form of a complete, integral organism, conscious and feeling itself in all members, despite their differences, and therefore giving them the right to a living and active participation in all that which refers to the life of the whole (όλου) of her Body" (Ibid., p. 106) .
With the ecclesiology of St. Clement directly connects with his ethical teaching. Since Christ is the Founder and Head of the Church, He is the image for determining the moral standards of behavior for its members. First of all, St. Clement pays special attention to the importance of repentance: salvation is impossible without repentance, for the Blood of Christ "brought the grace of repentance to the whole world" (μετανοίας χάριν - ch. 7). Further, for St. Clement, repentance is inseparable from humility commanded by the Lord: "strengthen yourself to walk in humility, obeying His holy commandments" (ch. 13). The Lord Himself shows us an example of humility, because He "came not in the brilliance of splendor and arrogance, although He could, but humbly" and for our sins meekly endured all the torments on the Cross (ch. 16). Here the Christological idea of "kenosis" also determines the moral teaching of St. Clement. Finally, humility and repentance are inconceivable without love. An inspirational hymn of Christian love in the spirit of St. The Apostle Paul sounds in the message: “Love unites us with God; love covers many sins, love accepts everything, endures everything magnanimously. , by love all God's chosen ones have reached perfection, without love there is nothing pleasing to God" (ch. 49). All ethical teachings of St. Clement is crowned with the proposition of justification by both faith and works, with the primary emphasis being placed on the former. He says: “We, being called by the will of God in Christ Jesus, are justified (δικαιούμεθα) not by ourselves, and not by our own wisdom, or understanding, or piety, or works done in holiness of heart by us, but through faith, by which God Almighty from time immemorial has justified everyone" (ch. 32). This, of course, does not mean neglect of business, since St. Clement admonishes: "with all our effort and readiness, let us hasten to do every good deed. For the Creator and Lord of all things rejoices in His deeds" (ch. 33).
Finally, it should be noted that the worldview of St. Clement is painted in eschatological tones, however, rather soft. This kind of eschatologism is inherent in all apostolic men, for "in the first centuries of Christianity, the hope for the speedy coming of Christ was, apparently, the dominant mood of the Christian world" (Pisarev L. I. Essays, p. 668). However, St. Clement, although this hope is present, it is not particularly emphasized. He only points to the greatness and beauty of the future promised gifts. The path to finding them, according to St. Clement, is possible under the following conditions: "If our mind is established in faith in God; if we seek what is pleasing and pleasing to Him; if we do what is in accordance with His holy will, and walk the path of truth, rejecting all unrighteousness and iniquity" (ch. 35). This phrase shows that the eschatology of St. Clement, like that of many other Fathers of the Church, is quite consonant with ethics, since only life according to Christ and in Christ gives a person access to the future Kingdom of God.
Therefore, one of the main intuitions of the epistle of St. Clement - a clear awareness of the deep interconnection of all parts of the Christian doctrine. The guiding principle and the connecting center of the entire worldview of the holy father is the idea of the House-building of God. As the action of all three Persons of the Holy Trinity, Dispensation encompasses the totality of the universe, but focuses primarily on the human race. For it is to people that God the Father sends His Son, Who, having assumed the fullness of humanity, redeemed the human race and opened the way to salvation for them, having founded His Church. She, being the Body of Christ, is guided by the law of deanery, harmony and unity of all her members. Obeying this law, every Christian must tune his life into harmony with the given spiritual law of universal existence, for without this he cannot become an heir to the Kingdom of God.
The high authority enjoyed in the ancient Church of St. Clement, had as a consequence the fact that unknown authors repeatedly signed their works with his name, thereby putting so-called "forgeries" into circulation in Christian reading. One of these "forgeries" was the "Second Epistle to the Corinthians of St. Clement of Rome" (See the Russian translation in the specified supplemented collection: Writings of the Apostolic Men, pp. 157-164; 401-406. Edition of the text: Apostolic Fathers: Vol. 1. - London, 1965. - P. 128-163). Doubts about its authenticity were already expressed in the 4th century. So, Eusebius of Caesarea remarks: "You should know that another message is also attributed to Clement, that it is not as well known as the first, and in ancient times it was not known" (Cherk. ist. III, 38). Bliss. Jerome already emphatically denies the authenticity of this epistle (O famous man, 15). It is rather difficult to determine the date of writing the epistle with accuracy, but most researchers tend to date it to the middle of the 2nd century BC. It is even more difficult to localize the place of writing, and Rome, Corinth and Egypt (but most likely Rome) are named as hypotheses. In terms of genre, the work, despite its title, does not in any way fit the definition of "messages:" it is a typical sermon and, probably, the first surviving Christian homily.
(It should be noted that the prerequisites for the emergence of the Christian genre of homily were already formed in Judaism at the turn of the new era (Philo of Alexandria, "The Fourth Book of Maccabees", etc.), and its foundations were laid in the New Testament (the Sermon on the Mount of the Lord Himself, the sermons of the holy Apostles, partially preserved in the Acts of the Holy Apostles, etc.) See Grelot P., Dumais M. Homelies sur 1 "Ecriture a Tepoque apostolique. - Paris, 1989. - P, 25 etc.).
As for the doctrine reflected in the Epistle, it is not rich in its dogmatic content, although it has a number of specific features. The doctrine of the Holy Trinity is assumed here, but remains in the background. The author's Christological views stand out more clearly. First of all, he especially emphasizes the Deity of Christ, and the Divine nature of the Lord is usually denoted by the word "Spirit" (πνεύμα): He, who was formerly the "Spirit", became "flesh" (ch. 9). The last expression (έγένετο σαρξ) is clearly inspired by Jn. 1:14 and we can assume that for the author λόγος and πνεύμα are identical concepts. Also, the connection of Christology with soteriology is especially emphasized. Christ is called the "Father of incorruption" (αρχηγός της αφθαρσίας), and through Him God the Father reveals to us truth and heavenly life (ch. 20). This salvation itself is unthinkable without the Incarnation of God the Word, who accepted the fullness of humanity. "He took pity on us, and in His mercy saved us, seeing that we are in error and perdition, and that for us there was no hope of salvation, except from Him. He called us who did not exist, and raised us from non-existence to being" (ch. 1). It is characteristic that salvation is understood here simultaneously both in the "ontological" and "epistemological" terms: it is not only the elevation from non-being to being (i.e., to participation in God as Absolute Being), but also the transition from ignorance to knowledge, from error to truth, from darkness to light: "Surrounded by darkness and having darkened vision, we, by His will, received sight and drove away the fog that had encircled us" (ch. 1).
Of all the theological aspects of the worldview of the author of the Epistle, the most remarkable is ecclesiology, which is presented mainly in chapter 14. Her feature is the doctrine of the pre-existing Church. It is sometimes assumed that the author, in developing this teaching, partly relied on the tradition of Judaism, in which ideas about certain spiritual realities created before the creation of the world (the Law, or Torah, Heavenly Jerusalem, Paradise, the Throne of Glory, etc.) were quite widespread. ) (Bardy G. La Theologie de l "Eglise de saint Clement de Rome a Saint Ire-nee. - Paris, 1945. - P. 162-165), however, since the author was in all probability a Gentile convert, such an assumption does not seem very plausible. If he accepted the listed Jewish views, then only through the previous Christian tradition, which radically changed their semantic content. Outlining the contours of his teaching about the pre-existing Church, the author says: "We will belong to the first, spiritual Church, created before the sun and moon," or to the "Church of Life," to which the fullness of salvation is granted. He combines this idea with the teaching of the Apostle Paul about the Church as the Body of Christ, but such a combination acquires bizarre features in the author's worldview. He believes that it is precisely such a pre-existing Church that is spoken of in Holy Scripture: "And God created man, male and female"(Gen. 1:27); by "man" is meant Christ, and by "woman" the Church. This Church does not belong to the real (ου νυν είναι) world, i.e. the material world, but, originating from above (άνωθεν), is spiritual, although it has become visible in last days to save humanity. A similar appearance of the "spiritual Church" took place "in the flesh of Christ," that is, probably in the visible and real Church. And if the members of the Church keep her incorruptible in the flesh, then they will find her so in the Holy Spirit. This somewhat unusual idea is linked by the author with the concept of άντιτυπος, which in Christian word usage had many meanings ("image," "copy," "symbol," etc.). In the message, it is most likely associated with some kind of earthly reflection of heavenly (spiritual) reality. For the author, the flesh is the "antitype" of the Spirit, and therefore one who offends the "antitype" cannot participate in its "original" (το αύθεντικον). From this it is concluded that the flesh must be kept pure in order to participate in the Spirit. Since the [earthly] Church is the "Flesh of Christ," then anyone who does dishonor to her (probably, heretics and schismatics are meant first of all) will not be able to become a partaker of the Spirit or the Heavenly Church. This ecclesiology of the epistle (taking into account, of course, the fact that it is not quite clearly expressed and formulated) raises certain doubts from the point of view of the Orthodox "acrivia," for it somewhat resembles the teaching of the Valentinian Gnostics about a pair ("syzygy") of pre-existing aeons, called " Man" and "Church" (See: Sagnard F. La gnose valentinienne et la temoignage de Saint Irenee. - Paris, 1947. - P. 302-306). True, such closeness to the heresy of the Valentinians should not be exaggerated: the presentation of the author of the epistle about the flesh as about the "antitype" of the Spirit clearly does not fit into the general mood of the "pseudo-gnostic" worldview (one should distinguish between genuine, i.e. churchly, "gnosis" and "gnosis "heretical, i.e. "pseudognosis"), in which the concept of "flesh" is usually associated with negative associations. It can even be assumed that the author of the epistle polemically sharpens his idea of the flesh as the "antitype" of the Spirit against the "pseudo-gnostics" who deny any significance of the material principle in man. In general, the author of the Second Epistle is clearly trying to base his idea of the Church on the teaching of St. Apostle Paul, who speaks of the Church as the "Bride of Christ" (2 Cor. 11:2 and Eph. 5:25-32), but further this teaching of the Apostle is developed by him in a direction that definitely deviates from the high road of Orthodox ecclesiology. At the same time, as Archimandrite Cyprian (Kern) notes, “the ecclesiology of this monument is interesting in the general context of early Christian ecclesiology. Ancient Christian literature did not write extensive theoretical treatises about the Church, since the Christian society of that time lived by the Church. This latter was not an abstract, theoretical truth" (Cyprian (Kern), archim. From lectures on patrol: St. Clement of Rome // Bulletin of the Russian Christian Movement. - 1986. - No. 150. - P. 30) Such a living feeling of the Church and churchness is also characteristic of the work under consideration.
Another feature of the worldview of the author of the Second Epistle, which brings him closer to other apostolic men, is a rather clearly expressed eschatologism. One of the main theological intuitions of the work is the antithesis of "this age" and "the age to come;" they are "two enemies," for the first "preaches adultery, debauchery, love of money and deceit," and the second denies and subverts these sins (ch. 6). Such an antithesis is conceived primarily in ethical terms, but the ethical aspect is closely connected with Christology and soteriology. A connection with ecclesiology is also implicitly traced, for the author, like many fathers of the Church, is characterized by the feeling that "the Church simultaneously lives in two dimensions" (Florovsky G. Eschatology in the Patristic Age: an Introduction // Studia Patristica. - 1957. - Vol. 2, Pt. 2. - P. 236). This is manifested in his teaching about the communion of the earthly Church with the Heavenly Church. This antithesis of "two centuries" is primarily understood as the opposition of "perishable" and "imperishable" (φθαρτός-αφθαρτος), i.e. transient and temporal being, on the one hand, and unshakable and eternal being, on the other. The first is associated in the composition with "this world of flesh" (κόσμος της σαρκός ταύτης), and therefore everything belonging to this world (τα κοσμικά) is short-lived and fragile; living in this world is understood as being in a foreign land (or: in exile, exile - the concept of παροικία). The author admonishes his listeners: "The wandering of our flesh in this world is small and short-lived, but the promise of Christ is great and marvelous, namely: the rest of the future Kingdom and eternal life" (ch. 5). All ethical teaching in the work is sustained in such an eschatological perspective (The connection between eschatology and ethical teaching is well traced in the book: Van Eijk T. Η. C. La resurrection des morts chez les Peres Apostoliques. - Paris, 1974. - P. 64-86): the eternal existence of the future age (which is the salvation bestowed by God the Father through Christ) is acquired by "a pious and righteous life;" such a life presupposes the recognition of worldly goods as something alien, for the desire to acquire them leads astray (ch. 5). And the author addresses the listeners in the following way: “Let us strive in such a way that we may all be crowned. close to the crown" (ch. 7). Such a feat of spiritual work is inseparable from the hope of eternal bliss: "Let us every hour look forward to the Kingdom of God in love and righteousness, because we do not know the day of the appearance of God" (ch. 12).
An undoubted ascetic tendency is clearly seen in the work. One of the key expressions here is the phrase: "keep (keep) the flesh clean" (τηρείν την σάρκα άγνήν). According to the author, the battle against this age does not at all mean contempt for the body, and the asceticism of the "Second Epistle" is clearly polemically directed both against pseudo-gnostic sects and against the ancratism akin to these sects.
(The concept of "encratism" (from the Greek εγκράτεια - "abstinence") usually has two main meanings: a broader and a narrower one. The first suggests a worldview trend that originates in the tradition of ancient Platonism with its dualism of the soul and , being divine in its origin, is sent to the body as a result of "sin" - forgetting about its purpose, which consists in the contemplation of the highest Good; therefore, the body is presented as a kind of "prison" and a place of punishment of the soul. A similar trend had an impact on early Christianity, where already in apostolic times, a trend of "rigorists" appeared, denying marriage and childbearing (St. Paul opposed this trend; see: 1 Cor. 7; 1 Tim. 2:15; 4:1-5). in the teachings of some "pseudo-gnostics" (Marcion, etc.) In the second, narrower sense, the concept of "encratism" is applied to those heretical sects, the founder of which is recognized as an apologist et Tatian. These sects reached their "flourishing" in the 4th century, mainly in Asia Minor and Syria. The Encratites at that time were represented by several sects ("Saccophores," "hydroparasts," etc.), which had their own hierarchy, independent of the Orthodox Church. Their teaching boiled down to several points: "cosmological dualism" (recognition that the world is the creation of a "lower" or "evil god"), the prohibition of marriage, regarded as the "work of the devil" and the prohibition of the use of wine (even with communion, only water was used) . See: Blond G. Encratisme // Dictionnaire de spiritualite. - Paris, 1961. - Fasc. 26-27. - P. 628-642).
Speaking of keeping the flesh in purity, the author identifies such "observance" with "preservation of the seal," i.e. with the preservation of the purity of baptism In general, according to the "Second Epistle," the flesh plays the most important role in the economy of salvation. It says here: “None of you should say that this flesh will not be judged and will not rise again. in the flesh, so you will come to judgment in the flesh" (ch. 9). In other words, according to the author, the flesh (or body) is precisely the area where the most essential thing in a person's life takes place - his salvation, for in the flesh we receive baptism and in the flesh we will rise again. Hence, the theme of repentance acquires the most important significance in the Epistle: on our way out of the world, we will no longer be able to confess or repent there" (ch. 8). As a result, through the sacrament of repentance, a person first of all gains salvation (ch. 13). Repentance is all the more necessary because the "Day of Judgment" is already near: on this day, both the hidden and the open deeds of people will become apparent. But for salvation, according to the author, not only repentance is needed: almsgiving and mercy, fasting and "prayer from a good conscience" are also necessary to free a person from death (ch. 16). Of the other moments of the ethical teaching set forth in the essay, the following can be noted: the Lord must be confessed by deeds - abstinence, mercy and kindness shown towards people; "if we do good, then peace will dwell in us" (ch. 10). In order to gain such spiritual peace and rest, one should cast aside all doubts and be firm in one's hope (ch. 11). Fraternal mutual assistance and obedience to the "elders" (presbyters) are also among the most important Christian virtues (ch. 17). Finally, Christians cannot be "men-pleasers" and in their righteousness they must serve as a model for pagans ("outsiders"), who, seeing that the deeds of Christians do not diverge from their words, will begin to heed the "words of God" (ch. 13) .
Thus, the work called "The Second Epistle of St. Clement of Rome" is an important monument of the early Christian era. The anonymous author of this sermon generally adheres to the Orthodox position, with the exception of the noted nuances of ecclesiology. He cannot be called an outstanding theologian, and his work does not shine with bright literary merits, but, being the spokesman for the views of a significant number of members of the "people of God," he conveys to us the voice of this people. Therefore, this work, despite some of its flaws, occupies a worthy place in the history of ancient church writing.
"Two District Epistles on Virginity" ("De virginitate"). "Pseudo-Clementines" ("Clementines").
"About Virginity."
In addition to the Second Epistle, St. Some other works are also attributed to Clement. For example, the above-mentioned "Apostolic Decrees" and "Clement's Octateuch." Among these "forgeries" of the greatest interest are two epistles to the ascetics who have chosen the ascetic life. In fact, these messages in their original form were a single work, later artificially divided into two parts. (general review for them, with the appendix of the corresponding bibliography, see: Quasten J. Patrology, vol. I, p. 58-59). The Greek original, with the exception of a few fragments, has been lost; the entire work has been preserved only in a Syriac translation (partially also in Coptic). It dates from approximately the middle of the 3rd century, written by an unknown author, probably in Palestine. True, there is also a no less solid assumption that this work could have been created in the Syro-Palestine area, i.e. in close proximity to the ancient Syro-lingual Christianity (See: Voobus A. History of Ascetism in the Syrian Orient. - Louvain, 1958. - Vol. 1. - P. 64-65). The main theme of this relatively large ascetic work (29 chapters in two epistles) is the advantage of a virgin life and the high moral demands placed on those who choose it.
(We rely on the Russian translation of Hieromonk Augustine: Clement, Pope of Rome, St. Two epistles about virginity, or to virgins and virgins // Proceedings of the Kyiv Theological Academy. - 1869. - T. 2. - S. 193 - 227. In in the preface to his translation, Father Augustine expresses an opinion about the true belonging of these letters to St. Clement of Rome - a thesis not supported by modern patrolological research).
In particular, it says here that “every virgin and every virgin who has decided to truly preserve his virginity for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven must be fit for this Kingdom in everything. For the Kingdom of Heaven is admired not by words, not by name, not by education, not by origin, not by beauty not by strength, not by longevity, but by the prowess of faith, when a person shows the works of faith" (I, 2). This New Testament thought about the unity of faith and deeds runs like a refrain through the entire composition: "A true believer will be saved, and whoever is called a believer only by name, but in reality is not, cannot be saved." All the more fundamental for every Christian, the principle of the unity of faith and deeds is necessary for those who have chosen the virgin life, for they "are excellent examples for those who believe and those who believe." Therefore, such ascetics must reject "and lust, and the seduction of this world, and joys, and drunkenness, and all its love," freeing themselves "from all treatment of the world, from all its cunning, nets and obstacles" (I, 3). He who desires to reach the heights of the Christian vocation “refuses because of it and separates himself from the whole world in order to retire and live a divine and heavenly life, like angels ... saints, in pure and holy service, in the holiness of the Spirit of God, and serve God Almighty through Jesus Christ for the Kingdom of Heaven" (I, 4). An example of such a ministry is the Most Holy Theotokos, for "the womb of the virginity of the saint bore our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, and in the body that our Lord bore and in which he fought in this world, He put on from the Holy Virgin;" many saints, both Old Testament (Elijah, Elisha, etc.)" and New Testament (Apostles Paul, Barnabas, etc.)" are also a model of virginity. Finally, the Lord Himself serves as the highest example of it. “Therefore, every virgin and virgin, unless they are perfectly like Christ or like those who are His, cannot be saved” (I, 6-7). Those who diligently fulfill their feat of a chaste life achieve the acquisition of the Spirit of God: “all their fruits are the fruits of the Spirit and Life, and they truly are the city of God, and the house, and the temple in which God dwells and dwells” (I, 9).
It is precisely the lofty goal of those who have chosen this feat that makes the author dwell in sufficient detail also on those who dishonor the great title of Christian virginity. In particular, he mentions the bad rumor that has spread regarding those people “who live with virgins under the pretense of piety, and endanger their souls, and walk with them alone, in the road and the wilderness, in a way full of dangers, temptations, nets and abysses." Others "eat and drink with virgins and saints in reclining (at the table), in the reposes and lewdness of many;" the third - "gather for idle talk, idle talk, laughter, to speak evil about each other and hunt with words one against the other" (I, 10). All such abuses and sins occur, according to the author, from idleness and laziness (I, 11). As a result, he commands those who have chosen the virgin life to continue in constant labor and service. Of the latter, he singles out visits to "orphans and widows, especially the poor, who have many children," providing them with all kinds of assistance. The second service of ascetics, noted in the work, is "to visit those possessed by evil spirits and perform incantatory prayers over them, pleasing in the face of God." Moreover, as the author says, "let them conjure with fasting and prayer, not with red, selective and refined words, but as men who have received the gift of healing from God" (I, 12). Judging by these remarks, ascetics in the III century. performed the ministry of the early Christian "exorcists," casting out demons, i.e. a service that later became the almost exclusive prerogative of monasticism.
The second part of the work (or the second epistle) is devoted almost half to the prescriptions regulating the rules of conduct for those who have chosen a chaste life. The true way of behavior of an ascetic is defined here as follows: "We do not live with virgins, and we have nothing to do with them, and we do not eat with them, we do not drink, and where a virgin sleeps, we do not sleep, and women do not wash our feet, and do not anoint us ... But if the time [of rest] overtakes us in any place, in a field, or a city, or in a village, where the brethren meet and are found, we go in to the brother and call all the brethren there, and speak with them words of exhortation and honest "(II, 1). Further, it is told about how one should behave if in the community where the ascetic came, there is no ascetic like himself; or if the whole community is made up of women and "faithful virgins." Special wisdom and sobriety are required if an ascetic finds himself in a place where only pagans live, and they beg him to stay for a few days. "For we do not serve like drunken pagans, blaspheming in their amusements, in words of deceit because of their wickedness. Therefore, we do not sing to the pagans and do not read scriptures to them" (II, 6). The work ends again with an appeal to the examples of the saints, who "all the time of their lives and even to the end, were in mutual communion, in service pure and without blemish" (II, 7). Particular attention is drawn to those of them who escaped the lusts of prodigal lust, for example, to Joseph, who worthily opposed the burning passion of the Egyptian woman. But reverse examples are also given: Sampson, who was a Nazirite, whom his wife "destroyed with a cheap body and evil lust," since "a husband's wife catches dear souls" (II, 9); David, who was "a man after his own heart, a faithful, perfect, holy, true man," but fell into temptation when he saw Bathsheba naked. And if such men, - exclaims the author, - perished through women, then what is your righteousness, or what are you among the saints, if you deal with women and virgins night and day, in much madness, without the fear of God?" (II, 10). ascetics must follow in the footsteps of the immaculate prophets and apostles, as well as in the footsteps of the Lord Himself, in Whom "is given a steady limit, edge and model for all human races" (II, 15).
If we accept the indicated dating of the work, then it indicates the appearance in the middle of the 3rd century. phenomenon of "proto-monasticism," However, the main and essential features of this phenomenon began to take shape from the very early Christian era (See: O "Neill. The Origins of Monasticism // The Making of Orthodoxy. Essays in Honor of Henry Chadwick. - Cambridge, 1989. - P. 270-287), but in the III century. they, judging by other sources, have acquired a pronounced character. True, one can hardly speak of monasticism in the proper sense of the word, because this ancient Christian asceticism has not yet acquired clear forms of its organization. The ascetics referred to in Pseudo-Clement's "Circumferential Epistles" lead predominantly a wanderer's life, moving from one local church to another, performing here the services of "healers" of the souls and bodies of believers, helping orphans and the poor, spiritually edifying and nourishing believers. It can be assumed that small communities of ascetics, still amorphous, are already being formed, including female ascetic communities - prototypes of future cenobitia. The formation of such "proto-monasticism" naturally was accompanied by "children's growing pains," to which the author of the work pays special attention. However, despite them, the outlines of "monastic ascetic theology" are quite clearly outlined in the work and spiritual guidelines are indicated for those who have chosen "the closest and narrowest path" to the Kingdom of Heaven.
"Pseudo-Clementines" ("Clementines").
The content of this monument is described in sufficient detail in an extensive article: Pobedinsky-Platonov I. About Clementines // Orthodox Review. - I860. - T. 1. - S. 151-172, 397-497; T. 2. - S. 339-384. See also: Ivantsov-Platonov A.M. Heresies and schisms of the first three centuries of Christianity. - M., 1887. - S. 20-24. best job in Russian is an encyclopedic article: Uspensky A.V. Klimentins // Theological Encyclopedia. - St. Petersburg, 1910. - T. 11. - S. 64-68. Unfortunately, the monument has not yet been translated into Russian, although there is a critical edition of it.
Under this common name, a group of monuments of ancient Christian writing, associated with the name of St. Clement of Rome or partly attributed to him. This group, which has a very heterogeneous character, consists of five works: 1) the Epistle of the Apostle Peter to James the Righteous, the first bishop of Jerusalem, with which the so-called "Testimony for those who receive the book" is connected; 2) the Epistle of Clement to James; 3) "Conversations" ("Homilies," number 20); 4) "Meetings," or "Recognitiones" (Recognitiones) in 10 books and 5) "Reduction of the deeds of Peter." Of these works, "Conversations" and "Meetings," which are the core of "Pseudo-Clementine," are of primary importance. They represent two independent editions, which, as the researchers suggest, are based on one work that has not come down to us, called "Peter's Sermons" (it should not be confused with the work of the same name, which is quoted by Clement of Alexandria. See: Strecker G. Das Judenchristentum in den Pseudoklementinien. - Berlin, 1981. - S. 255-270). It is also assumed that it was created by an unknown author c. middle of the 3rd century, probably in Syria. Later, in the first decades of the 4th century, the work was revised by a certain editor, whose worldview was characterized by Arian tendencies, and took the form of "Homilia." A little later, ok. the middle of the 4th century, the "Sermons of Peter" are again revised, this time by an Orthodox editor, as a result of which the edition of "Meetings" ("Recognitions") appears. The Greek original of the last edition has been lost; the work has been preserved, in addition to the mentioned Latin translation of Rufinus, in the Syriac translation at the turn of the 5th century. A kind of "shell" of both editions is an "apocryphal novel" with an entertaining storyline "of an action-packed nature." Here Clement is described as the scion of a noble Roman family related to the emperor. He is tormented by an inescapable desire to resolve the great questions of life: about the origin of the world, the emergence of evil, the problem of the immortality of the soul, etc. In search of an answer to these questions, he turns to various pagan cults and philosophical schools, but nowhere does he find an answer. As a result, Clement falls seriously ill, and only a deaf rumor that "Someone" in distant Judea announced the joyful news of the salvation of all people wakes him up. The young man is immediately going on the road, but, due to adverse weather conditions, his ship ends up in Alexandria. Here he meets the Apostle Barnabas, who introduces the young man to the Apostle Peter. Having converted, Clement becomes a companion of the supreme Apostle, a witness to his conversations and disputes (including disputes with the "archieretic" Simon Magus), which are recorded. In general, according to A. V. Uspensky, Clement in the "Pseudo-Clementines" appears as "a symbol of the noble soul of the pagan, thirsting for truth;" in his description "one can see a striking analogy with the writings of St. Justin the Philosopher." The novel also describes the fate of the Clement family, whose members, as a result of an unfortunate set of circumstances, lost each other, but, thanks to St. Peter, reunited (hence the name of one of the editions - "Meetings").
As for the doctrinal content of the monument, in terms of the foundations of its worldview (reflected primarily in the "Sermons of Peter"), it is in close contact with the current of the so-called "Jewish Gnosticism" (or "Gnostic Judaism").
(See: Cullmann O. Le probleme litteraire et historique du roman Pseudo-Clementin: Etude sur le rapport entre le gnosticisme et le judeo-christianisme. - Paris, 1930. - P. 78-79; 170-220; Goppelt L. Christentum und Judentum im ersten und zweiten Jahrhundert - Gutersloh, 1954. - S. 174).
Since in Judaism of this period the emergence of such "gnostic" tendencies is indeed observed (although it is rather difficult to date this origin with accuracy) (See: Sholem G. The main currents in Jewish mysticism: Part 1. - Jerusalem, 1989. - S. 68-118), such an assumption is not without some plausibility. This ideological current in Judaism also found a response on the periphery of ancient Christianity, as a result of which a rather amorphous phenomenon of "Judeo-Christian gnosis" arose. (See: Danielou J. Judeo-christianisme et Gnose // Aspects du judeo-christianisme: Colloque de Strasbourg 23-25 April 1964. - Paris, 1965. - P. 139-166) one part of which (for example, the sect of the Elkasaites) completely went beyond the boundaries of the Church, while the other (reflected in the "Pseudo-Clementines") unstablely balanced within these boundaries, still tending, as a rule, to fall away from the Church. The author (more precisely, the authors and editors) of the work in question proceeds from the premise that "the historical forms of the discovery of a single eternal primary religion - Judaism and Christianity - do not have much significance. He almost completely destroys the prerogatives of the Jews as a chosen people. Both religions differ in their historical purpose: one (Judaism) is appointed for the Jews, the other (Christianity) for the Gentiles. "Therefore," says the author, "no Jews are condemned for ignorance of Jesus, unless, fulfilling the instructions of Moses, they do not hate Him Whom they do not know; neither pagans (i.e., Gentile Christians) are condemned for ignorance of Moses, if, fulfilling the words of Jesus, they do not hate Him whom they do not know "(Notes 8, 6). Guided by this view, the author of" Clementine " resolutely rejects everything outward and coarse in Judaism, and in particular he pronounces a severe sentence on the sacrificial cult (Not. 2, 44; 3, 24, 45, 56). St. Apostle Paul. Silently he recognizes (at least for natural Jews) circumcision and the Sabbath, undoubtedly preserves many of the prescriptions of the law on ablutions "(A. V. Uspensky).
Such a wide syncretism resulted in the fact that in the "Pseudo-Clementines" various worldview elements merged in a very bizarre way. On the one hand, the author (authors) adheres to monotheism, on the other hand, they gravitate towards a certain dualism, which, for example, can be traced in such an excerpt from the Homilies (translated by A. V. Uspensky): "God ... divided everything to the last limits in two and in opposition ... He Himself from the beginning is one God, He created heaven and earth, day and night, light and fire, sun and moon, life and death ... Two kings were also appointed: one of them (the devil) was assigned to reign over the temporal world, and to another (Christ) to own the kingdom of the age to come" (Notes 2:15; 20:2). However, this dualism is not metaphysical, but ethical, because the substantiality of evil is denied. The blame for the evil in the world falls entirely on a person who has free will. According to the author, man "is something much more than one of the links of nature. He is, as it were, a world focus, in which the rays of world life are refracted and receive reversed correction. In him, all the best in the world finds its expression; from him, and only from him, everything evil comes" (A. V. Uspensky). Man's voluntary falling into evil and his deviation from the truth was manifested in the appearance of "women's prophecies" in the world, ascending to Eve. She "is the first false prophet; after her, before every better person, the worst person appears, and before every true prophet, a false one appears. the beginnings - good and bad, which manifested themselves separately in Adam and Eve, are mixed in subsequent births, and again from time to time appear separately in history in the person of true and false prophets "(I. Pobedinsky-Platonov). In other words, false prophets are opposed by true prophets, who lead their line from Adam, since he "taught his children to love God and be worthy of the love of God. He gave them the eternal law, which could neither be damaged nor corrected and which could be read by everyone" ( I. Pobedins cue-Plato is new). The confrontation between Truth and falsehood, each of which has its own "proclaimers," determines the course of world history. In principle, Adam, as the ancestor of the line of true prophets, is identified in the "Pseudo-Clementines" with Christ, Who is depicted as a "pre-existing Prophet of Truth," informing people of saving knowledge ("gnosis"). This "Prophet of Truth," appearing first in the body of Adam, then periodically incarnates in the Old Testament righteous (Enoch, Noah, Moses, etc.). His supreme incarnation was Jesus, who restored the original religion to its universal significance. Thus, the unique and inimitable act of the Incarnation of God the Word in the "Pseudo-Clementines" is replaced by periodic reincarnations of the pre-worldly "Zone of Christ." Naturally, there is no idea of redemption here.
In general, this monument is certainly alien to the spirit of the Catholic Church. A radical reworking of it was required so that it, mainly in the form of "Meetings," was partially assimilated by the church consciousness. However, this assimilation mainly affected not the doctrinal, but the narrative material contained in the "Pseudo-Clementines." The legendary details of the "apocryphal novel" were later included in various versions of the "Life" of St. Clement, including reflected in the "Four Menaions" of St. Dimitri Rostovsky.
The letter of Clement of Alexandria to Theodore. Translated from Greek by Victor Kalashnikov, MDiv.
This is the first ever Russian translation of Clement's letter. It will be published in the upcoming issue of "Christianstvo", a Russian-language Christian magazine, in the end of June, 2002. The author can be contacted at these addresses: www.areopag.com [email protected]
You did the right thing by banning the disgusting teachings of the Carpocrates. This prophecy of theirs calls "wandering stars", turning from the narrow path of the commandments into the bottomless abyss of carnal and bodily sins. Because being proud of the knowledge, as they say, "the depths of Satan", they did not notice how they plunged themselves into the hopeless darkness of lies. And boasting that they are "free", they enslaved themselves to passions. Therefore, we must jointly and with all our might resist such people. Even if one of them says something true, even then he who loves the truth should not agree with them, since not every correct judgment is in agreement with the Truth. And what seems to be true in the opinion of people cannot be preferred to real truths that are consistent with faith.
Now, with regard to their constant discourses about the divinely inspired gospel of Mark, partly, this is a complete lie, and if there are elements of truth, they are misreported. Truth mixed with falsehood becomes false, as they say, even salt becomes tasteless.
As for Mark, during Peter's stay in Rome he wrote down all the acts of the Lord. But, in fact, he did not announce all the deeds, and did not hint at the secret ones, but chose those that he considered the most useful for the growth of catechumens in the faith. And when Peter died as a martyr, Mark went to Alexandria, taking with him notes, his own and Peter's. From these notes, he transferred to his original book those parts that contributed to the growth of knowledge. In this way he composed a more spiritual gospel for those advanced to perfection. But he did not divulge what should not be said in vain, and he did not write down the hierophanic teachings of the Lord, but only added others to the previously recorded deeds. Also, he added some sayings, the interpretation of which, he knew, would elevate the hearers to the sanctuary of truth, beyond the seven veils. So, in the end, he prepared everything without envy, I believe, and hastily and after death left his work to the church in Alexandria, where it is now very securely stored, available for reading only to those who are initiated into the great mysteries.
But since the unclean spirits always contemplate the destruction of the human race, they taught Carpocrates, using cunning tricks, to lure into their nets one presbyter of the Alexandrian church and lure from him a copy of the Secret Gospel, which Carpocrates interpreted according to his carnal blasphemous ideas and desecrated, mixing holy immaculate words with the most blatant lie. From this mixture came the doctrine of the Carpocratians.
Therefore, as I wrote above, concessions cannot be made to them in anything, and when they present their forgeries, it cannot be recognized that the Secret Gospel was written by Mark. But even with an oath to deny it! For not every person can be told every truth. Therefore, the wisdom of God proclaimed through Solomon: "Answer the fool according to his foolishness," showing by this that from those who are mentally blind, the light of truth should be hidden. And again she confirmed: "it will be taken from the one who does not have," and "let the fool wander in darkness." And we are the children of light, illumined "from above by the rising of the sun," i.e. Spirit of the Lord. And "where the Spirit of the Lord" - she said - "there is freedom", because "everything is pure, for those who are pure."
Therefore, to you I will not hesitate to answer the questions asked, in order to expose the counterfeits by the very words of the gospel. Thus, after "when they were on their way, going up to Jerusalem", and further, until "and after three days he shall rise again", here it is said, word for word:
"And they came to Bethany. And there was a woman whose brother had died. And coming up, she fell on her face before Jesus, and said to Him: "Son of David, have mercy on me!" The disciples rebuked her. And being angry, Jesus went away with her into the garden where the tomb was located. And immediately there was a loud cry from the tomb. And coming up, Jesus rolled away the stone from the door of the tomb. And going in, he immediately stretched out his hand to the young man who was there and lifted him up, holding his hand. And the disciple, looking at Him, loved Him and began to beg Him to be with Him. And coming out of the tomb, they came to the house of the young man, and he was rich. And after six days, Jesus told him what he should do. And when evening came, the young man came to Him, in one sheet [or burial shroud] thrown over his naked body and remained with Him that night, as Jesus taught him the secret of the Kingdom of God. And rising, He returned to the other side."
After these words follows: "And James and John came up to him," and the whole subsequent section. But the words "naked with naked" and everything else that you wrote about are not here. And after "and comes to Jericho", only added: "And there were the sister of the young man whom Jesus loved, and his mother, and Salome. But Jesus did not receive them."
Everything else that you wrote about seems to be a lie, but it is so! If, however, a correct interpretation is given, in accordance with true philosophy, then ... "
[(Here the text breaks unexpectedly)]
Translation by Viktor Kalashnikov