The Overflowing Grace of the Spirit

Men leave the power of fornication to themselves; they are heavy judges and teachers of women's modesty, while they themselves trespass upon many bodies, being like doctors who, according to the proverb, infect with a myriad of lures.

Even if one of them falls into these transgressions, they present a decorated and playful defense. For men say that even if they approach many women, they do not defile their own hearth; but women, from whom they sin, introduce alien heirs to the houses and the lineages. Let the sophists and finders of the adulterous opinion listen, that they themselves also overturn other hearths and houses.

For the women with whom they associate are certainly either daughters or wives of someone; and in every way, either a marriage is being plotted against or a parent is being wronged, he who fathered and reared and hoped to have a virgin upon the paving and in the bridal chamber, but all good expectation was taken away from him by the robbers of temperance.

If the dissolute man is a father, let him recognize the father's suffering being missed; if a husband, let him represent himself as the one being wronged. For it is easy thus to judge others for everyone, as if he would wish another for himself. If some, paying attention to certain Roman laws, unashamedly consider fornication to be permissible, they are terribly wandering in error, not knowing that God legislates differently and men dogmatize differently.

Listen to Moses announcing the will of God and bringing forth the bitter decisions concerning fornicators. Listen to Paul saying: 'God will judge fornicators and adulterers' (1 Cor 6:9). And the others will not suffice you for salvation at the time of retribution, but trembling and sweating, they will be consumed. To you, Plato, the sophist of laws, will appear foolish and uneducated, and that heavy tone will be humbled, having had its power lifted against all lawgivers.

When they see the bodily ones being dragged away, to whom they themselves have badly affected the authority.

But certainly those not having prevented others, they first turned the sin toward themselves and will be found guilty of a double charge, which they themselves practiced and for which they left others to live without restraint. Therefore, those wishing to live with the worldly as if with most precious brides, let them themselves make their own way a teacher of their housemates, so that they may have good zeal from the hearth.

Word of Asterius Bishop of Amaseia on the prophet Daniel and on Susanna. Always having the grace of the Spirit overflowing, the wealth of the gift does not fail its own supply nor those whom it wishes to demonstrate. For just as a river, filled with waters leaping toward life, stands opposite to those seeing this and according to the earth, it has the releases of its energies being granted.

For the stream does not fail it just as for those sometimes, nor does it receive rises and falls as they do, nor does it contain both the whole and the part according to these, but it fills always and suffices for all; and flowing toward the partakers of the fullness, it remains nothing less than full, for indeed having the grace thus abundant, it knows not how to distribute and divide even according to ages.

For the immeasurable things do not know how to be measured by the bulk of bodies, but by the nobility and purity of soul to come together and to shine forth. And because of this, now it behaves toward Samuel being nourished with milk, but now it takes up David from his sheep, rising above the brothers to whom it seemed to overlook him because of the incompleteness of his age.

Another, perfected by the anointing from a different source, and with those now lying in hypothesis, the blessed and truly wise Daniel, still soft and at the same time fresh in harvest, establishes as judge and prophet both of the young and the elders; who, even if the heavy work of that captivity has become his, and