Tag: John of Damascus

I have completed my translation of the so-called “Jerusalem Life” of St. John Damascene, or John of Damascus.  It is the same as the individual chunks posted earlier, but with bible references and additional footnotes.  As usual, I make this file public domain.  Do whatever you like with it, personal, educational or commercial.

Here are the files:

• Life of St John Damascene – 2025 (PDF)
• Life of St John Damascene – 2025 (Word .docx)

The files can also be found at Archive.org here.

Thank you to everyone who contributed to this, especially Diego, without whom it would never have been done!

Well, I thought that I was pretty much done with the Life of John Damascene, but it seems not.

Over the weekend, I printed off the whole thing, and got to work with a pen, highlighting errors.

People forget the power of paper.  Even in my days as a professional software engineer, I sometimes found it useful to print out a whole program on paper, and work on the listing with different coloured biros.  Some of the younger staff raised their eyebrows; but you just cannot get a picture of the whole thing nearly so well on a screen. Paper is a valuable tool.

I was delighted to find that in general the translation reads well.  There are quite a few typos, but nothing significant.  Which is really rather pleasing, and not at all expected.

So I sat down today to process the print-out into the electronic text.  My eye fell on the first query, in chapter one – a word underlined that read slightly awkwardly.  So I looked again at the Latin and found that it did not fit my translation well.  Then I went to look up the file with the Greek analysis; and I found that there wasn’t one.  I hadn’t started saving the same working files to disk until chapter 5.

Any translation project is like this.  You cannot just launch into it.  You have to learn how to do it.  You have to devise a way of working.  When you start out, you don’t know what you’re doing, and what will work.

Which means that, when you have reached the end of the text, and learned how to do it as you go, you will almost invariably have to go back to chapter 1 and redo it, and a number of subsequent chapters.

A little investigating reveals the story.  When I started this project, I originally intended simply to blast the old Latin translation through Google Translate and ChatGPT, interleave the results with the Latin, and make a quick translation that way.  Not ideal, but better than nothing.

But then… scope creep.  I obtained the Greek text, and started interleaving a machine translation of that also, just to keep things sensible.  And then I started doing a real analysis of the grammar and syntax of the Greek, and working with that for each sentence.

In chapter 1, I was still really thinking about the Latin.  By chapter 40 I had long since ceased to have any such idea.

Which means that the early chapters will have to be done again, properly, from the Greek; at least until I reach a place where I had started to do so.

I remember that something similar happened when I was working on John the Deacon’s Life of St Nicholas.  It’s inevitable in any non-trivial piece of work; that by the time you reach the end, you’ve become a better craftsman than you were when you started.

Oh well.  I shall call it “phase 2”.

The final section.  Cosmas comes to help John.  Less helpfully the patriarch of Jerusalem ordains them both as priests.  John returns to Mar Saba.  His work  against the iconoclasts receives the endorsement of St Stephen the Younger.  Death of John, and prayer of the author of the Life, also named John.

*    *    *    *

35.¹  In writing books he had Cosmas to encourage him, and as a partner in publishing songs.  John becomes a presbyter of the Church of Jerusalem.

Supporting him in his labours was the dignified² Cosmas [the Younger], who was his brother in the Holy Spirit, who was a sharer with him in teachings, in his spiritual ascent, and in ascetic practice.  Likewise he [Cosmas] also wisely imitated John in his spiritual labours in hymns, and he sang forth melodious harmonies to the church, with the lyre and with his voice in psalmody, having presented his own body to God as a drum³ through the mortification of his passions, and made himself into a ten-stringed psaltery, by skillfully and wisely tuning the five-fold sense of the body and the corresponding faculties of the soul.  Then Cosmas was ordained as bishop of Maiuma by the patriarch of Jerusalem; not willingly, but he yielded under compulsion, and, having shepherded his flock well, and as a friend of God, he reached a good old age, and departed to his fathers; rather, he journeyed to God.  As for John, the patriarch of Jerusalem⁴ summoned him by the inspiration of God, and ordained him to praise the Lord ‘in the chair of the elders.’

36.⁵

But the high-soaring eagle, returning once more to the Lavra of the God-bearing Saba, and entering once more his own nest, did not take to heart that commandment of Solomon⁶, that elders are worthy of double honour,⁷ but instead, as if redirecting it, he turned it against himself, saying that elders should strive for double humility; that elders should practice asceticism twice as much as before; that elders should engage in double contests, not only against the passions of the  body, but also against those [passions] of the soul, and the hidden [passions], which often escape the notice of those who practice asceticism unless they are exceedingly watchful, and then their inner man is defiled without their even realizing it.  Now such hidden passions are: deceit, envy, arrogance, hidden arrogance, vanity disguised as humility, meddling in the affairs of others, which leads to many vices of speech, self-importance, anxious wavering, a deceitful disposition, pride in bodily humility, self-indulgence disguised as self-control, insistence on one’s own will, the pursuit of money for insignificant matters, clothing beyond that allowed by rule, from which arises disagreement with the brothers, and the unnoticed snare of pride.

37.⁸  He reviews and revises his writings and books.

Striving to uproot these things from his mind, John added labour upon labour, and even more so spiritual labours. Focusing his mind, and pulling together what he had earlier laboured over, he reviewed these things [his books], refining, polishing and meticulously correctly the diction, meaning, rhythm and structure; and wherever the ornamentation was overly florid and somewhat excessive, he reduced it out of prudence, so that his writings might avoid anything like ostentation or frivolity.  As a result, anyone who carefully examines his works of this kind will perceive the depth of thought and the elegance of expression, combined with grandeur.⁹  And who, upon reading his writings, would not praise his zeal for piety? How [marvellously] did he distribute his wealth of wisdom to all, seeing that, from the talent of knowledge that he had received, he did not merely double it but increased it tenfold.  For I refrain from raising the number further, to avoid seeming to be exceeding the limits in the gospel.  For it is plainly not right to speak beyond the proper limits.

38.¹⁰  Stephen the Younger¹¹ praises John Damascene.

Divine zeal prevailed on him to such an extent that, fighting for the laws of God, he struck at those in Constantinople who were destroyers and desecrators of the holy images, first from Damascus and a second time from Palestine.  A native of that great city, who had the same name as the protomartyr struck down¹² for the sake of Christ, he was likewise struck down for the sake of his image and ascended into heaven.¹³  For this reason he mentioned the books of John, and his anathemas from afar against the impious, and he called him a man of God. But although he [John] was never anointed with the unction of the episcopate (for the truth must not be concealed), he must still be regarded as crowned with the band of martyrdom; for it was because of his extraordinary zeal for piety that the calumny was brought against the pious man, because of which his hand was cut off.

39.¹⁴ Death of John.

He spent his life living in this way, and when he had completed his ascetic journey, and kept the faith – indeed he propagated it with his books and strengthened it through his teaching, and through his labours he is still confirming, upholding and strengthening it to this day – he ascended to Christ whom he loved.  And now he does not see Him in an image, nor adore Him in likeness, but beholds Him face to face,¹⁵ gazing with unveiled face¹⁶ upon the glory of the blessed Trinity.  For these reasons, it was right for us to praise in words to the best of our ability this athlete, this ascetic, this ornament of the church, this herald of truth, the athletic one, and the teacher of doctrine, and instructor of the unlearned.  This is not in order that we might acquire even the least bit of glory for ourselves, but so that so that he in turn will remember us in heaven, and that we may be filled with His heavenly glory even while [we are] still dwelling on earth: that glory which David testifies dwells within the princess, namely within the royal soul, saying, “All the glory of the princess is within.”¹⁷

40. ¹⁸

Forgive me, O thrice-blessed man, and be my fervent and steadfast intercessor before God, because I, who share your name, found this excellent collection, made by someone else, as the man was able, in a simple style, and written in the Arabic language and script; and, out of longing for this work, and with as much diligence as I could muster, I have translated and revised¹⁹ it, [guided] by your corrections, or, where need be, your instructions.²⁰  Grant me also to be a spiritual worshipper of the Trinity entirely beyond the body, living wholly in contemplation, wholly sanctified in the fire²¹ of divine love, but still dwelling in the body, so that, when I depart from the flesh with detachment, I may present myself with boldness with you before God; to Whom be glory, forever and ever. Amen.

The End of the Life of the holy and great John of Damascus.  This has been collated with its own antigraph.²²

*    *    *    *

I will gather up all the sections and create a final version shortly.

1. 35 in the Bollandists and the modern edition, 34 in the Lequien and PG.[↩]
2. κόσμιος.[↩]
3. “τύμπανον”, “tympanum.”[↩]
4. Lit. “the one steering the helm of Jerusalem.”[↩]
5. 36 in the Bollandists and the modern edition, 35 in the Lequien and PG.[↩]
6. The PG text prints “Apostle”, but neither Lequien nor any manuscript gives this.[↩]
7. 1 Tim. 5:17.[↩]
8. 37 in the Bollandists and the modern edition, 36 in the Lequien and PG.[↩]
9. σεμνότης. Lequien translates as “majestate”, “majesty.”[↩]
10. 38 in the Bollandists and the modern edition, 37 in the Lequien and PG.[↩]
11. A Byzantine monk executed in 764 by Constantine V for his opposition to iconoclasm.  An orthodox saint.[↩]
12. The idea is of blows with a blunt object.[↩]
13. This sentence and those that follow make up a single sentence in Greek.[↩]
14. 38 in Lequien and PG.[↩]
15. 1 Cor. 13:12: “For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face.”[↩]
16. Cf. 2 Cor. 3:18: “But we all, with unveiled face beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory,”[↩]
17. Psalm 44:14 Vulg; Ps. 45:13[↩]
18. 40 in the Bollandists and the modern edition, 39 in the Lequien and PG.[↩]
19. The word is “transform”.[↩]
20. I.e. in a vision.[↩]
21. ὁλοκαύτωσις, sacrifice of a burnt-offering. [↩]
22. Antigraph: a manuscript from which a copy (the apograph) is made.[↩]

In the last episode of John’s “Life”, he had been turned out of his cell in the monastery at Mar Saba for inadvertently disobeying his spiritual teacher.

*    *    *    *

30.

Then one of the monks said, “It is possible to impose another commandment on the one who has sinned, and not cast him out from your fellowship.”¹  Then the one being entreated said, “I impose this commandment on John, if indeed he wishes for his disobedience to be forgiven: to go through the entire area of the Lavra, and to clean by himself the filth from the small houses in the cells of the monks.”²  Those who heard this, embarrassed at these words, departed in sorrow, astonished at the elder’s severity.  John went to meet them and made his customary bow, and inquired about the decision of his [spiritual] father concerning him.  But they answered that they were astonished at the elder’s severity, and, out of embarrassment, were hesitant to disclose the decision.  However he [John] persistently pleaded with them to reveal it.  In the end they were overcome and told him of that disgraceful cleaning task.  But when he heard this, he [John] rejoiced beyond all expectation and said, “This is easier for me and most welcome.”  So at once he departed, and sought out the cleaning materials, took them, and approached the cell of the monk who lived near the elder.  Entering in, he began to soil those hands, which had previously been perfumed to many with fragrant oils, even the right hand that had served Christ.  O, the great humility of the man! He made himself into one covered in dung and mud.

31.  The elder admires John’s obedience and humility.

But when the elder learned of John’s great zeal for obedience and the depth of his sincere and profound humility, or rather how great it was, he ran toward him, embraced him, and wrapped his arms around his neck, clasped his hands, kissed his eyes, and affectionately kissed his shoulders.  “Oh, what an athlete of blessed obedience I have begotten in Christ!” he exclaimed.  But John was even more embarrassed at the words of the elder, and fell prostrate and bathed the ground with his tears, as if casting himself down before God himself.  For he was not puffed up by his fatherly words, nor was he swollen with pride at the elder’s praise, but he humbled himself even more, and his mind was utterly crushed.  In this way, I know, the wise are humbled by praise, are pained by commendations, and are lifted up toward God.³  At this, the father⁴ raised up his son, took him by the hand, and led him into his cell with joy.  On seeing John, you might have said that he was now being restored to the paradise of Eden.  For within himself, where he had previously represented the old Adam by disobedience, now within himself he represented the new Christ, by that extreme obedience.

32.⁵  The Theotokos warns the elder in a dream to allow John to devote himself to writing.

Not long afterwards, the most praised and more pure One appeared to the elder in a dream, saying, “Why did you block the fountain that poured forth such a sweet flow of water, clear, abundant and like nectar? Water of refreshment for souls?  Water more excellent than that which miraculously gushed out of a rock in the wilderness?  Water which David longed to drink?  Water which Christ promised to the Samaritan woman?  Let the fountain flow!  It will flow abundantly and spread throughout the whole inhabited world, like a mighty water covering the seas of heresies. And it will transform them into a wondrous sweetness.  Let those who are thirsty hasten eagerly to this water; and let those who do not have the silver of a pure life, let them sell their passions and purchase from John an unblemished purity of doctrine and works.  He has taken up the prophetic lyre, the psalter of David, and he will sing new songs, songs to the Lord God.  He will surpass the song of Moses with his musical compositions, and the choral dance of Miriam.⁶  The valueless melodies of Orpheus will be exposed as fables.  He will sing⁷ a spiritual and heavenly melody. He will imitate the Cherubic hymns,⁸ and he will make all the churches, the daughters of Jerusalem, like young maidens playing tambourines, singing a new song to God, proclaiming Christ’s death and resurrection.  He will teach the doctrines of faith very correctly, and will expose the distortion and deviation of every heresy.⁹  He will pour forth good discourses from his heart, and he will proclaim the exceedingly marvellous works of the King.”

33.

At dawn, having learned these secrets, he summoned John and said, “O child of the obedience of Christ!  Open your mouth and draw in the Spirit; rather, bring forth through your mouth that which you have already received in your heart.  For your mouth shall speak wisdom because in your heart you have gained great understanding through your meditation.  Open your mouth, not in parables but in truths; not in riddles but in doctrines.  Speak within the Jerusalem which sees God, within His peaceful Church—not words idly spoken and flowing into the air, but those that the Spirit has written in your heart.  You have ascended the Mount Sinai of the visions and revelations of God, even though you have humbled yourself to the depths of great humility.  Now ascend  the mountain of the Church, and proclaim, preaching good news to Jerusalem; raise your voice with power!  For glorious things have been spoken to me concerning you by the Mother of God.  Forgive me also for whatever obstacle I have been to you, for I acted so because of my own rusticity.”

34.  John’s various hymns, and his books On Dialectics, On Heresies, and On the Orthodox Faith.

Therefore from this time onwards John began [composing] divine melodies, and sang mellifluous hymns, which indeed brightened the Church and made it a dwelling place of God, where the pure sound of those celebrating is heard.  Not only this, but he also composed sermons for major feast days¹⁰ and that sacred book, or, so to speak, that divinely inscribed tablet, engraving no small encouragement to both the wise and the unlearned, and [acting as] a gateway to the mysteries of theology, the other doctrines of the true faith; and also to a concise contemplation and knowledge of those things that fall within the realm of the intellect and of sense perception.¹¹ which I have called “heaven,” for it shines like stars with correct demonstrations, from nature and scripture, and exceedingly learned.¹²  Indeed, whoever does not look up to this “heaven,” whoever does not delight in its beauty, and is blind to its light, is either blind or in darkness. I would even call wretched the one who squints at its divine radiance.  Furthermore John also composed lengthy discourses, and again, [wrote] concerning the glorious veneration of the divine images.  And the more he had formed within himself the beauty of the divine image, the more sublimely and elegantly he set forth the matters concerning the veneration of the venerable icons.

*    *    *    *

Only one more set of chapters to go, I think.

1. Lequien reads, “but to cast him out from your fellowship altogether is not just.”[↩]
2. “οἰκίδιον” – this seems to mean the toilets.[↩]
3. The Latin understands the last phrase to mean “are lifting themselves up.”[↩]
4. i.e. the elder monk.[↩]
5. In Lequien and the PG reprint, these two chapters 31 and 32 are both numbered XXXI.  In the Acta Sanctorum edition, and the new German edition this chapter is numbered 32, and all subsequent chapters are numbered accordingly.[↩]
6. Moses’ sister.  Exodus 15:20-21.[↩]
7. The sense is perhaps “compose.”[↩]
8. “Χερουβικός”.  Liturgical hymns like the Cherubikon, perhaps, rather than “hymns of the Cherubim.”[↩]
9. This refers to John’s dogmatic and anti-heretical works.[↩]
10. φαιδρὰς πανηγύρεις, literally “bright holidays”, but I learn from Lampe that πανήγυρις 1.c.iii means major festal days like Easter.[↩]
11. Lit. “of both the intelligible and the sensible realities.”[↩]
12. I struggled with the syntax here.[↩]

John has gone into the monastery of Mar Saba near Jerusalem, where one of the old men has accepted him as a disciple.

*    *    *    *

26.  He is sent to Damascus to sell baskets.

After this, as the elder was training the athlete in the greater contests of obedience, what did he devise?  He gathered together many baskets, which they had woven with their own hands, and presented them to John with the following pretext: “My son, I have heard that baskets are sold in Damascus for much more than in Palestine, and, as you know, we are in need of many things. So take them all, go there as quickly as you can, and do not sell them for less, even by a little, than the exact amount that I tell you.” Then he set the price at more than double their worth.  But he [John] did not object, nor did he question the command of the one who gave him orders, being obedient even to death.  As if with wings of obedience, he took the load on his shoulders, and set off to Damascus, he who was once held in high regard there, now in rags, parched and filthy.  And he wandered around the marketplace, trying to make a sale of the baskets.  But since he was asking for too high a price, he provoked laughter, and became to all the object of reproach and insults.  Then one of those who had served him when he was a well-known man in the city, standing close to him and studying his appearance, realised who this wretched and ragged man was, and what he had become. His heart was crushed, and though he knew him, he approached as if he did not, and bought the baskets, giving him the exact price that had been demanded.  Having received this, he retraced his path to the one who had sent him, and returned like a victor who had boldly struck down his opponent to the ground, the father of empty glory and pride.

27.  He is asked to compose a funeral hymn.

Now, among the neighbours of John’s superior, there was a certain monk who left his dwelling on earth and departed to the heavenly abode, and journeyed to God.  He [this monk] had a brother according to the flesh, who, overcome by the calamity, was utterly unable to bear the death of his brother.  So John tried to comfort the grieving brother and, as best he could, tried to alleviate his grief with words.  But the mourning man implored him and earnestly begged him to compose a hymn that would offer consolation to his grief and soothe his soul.  Yet John feared the commandment of the elder, and did not consent to the request.  On the other hand the man did not cease his entreaties. “For why,” he said, “do you not have mercy on the soul of one who is suffering, and apply just a little painless medicine to it? If you were a physician of the body, and bodily pain was afflicting me, would you not provide me with the medicine to the best of your ability?  And if I were suffering terribly, perhaps even to the point of death, would you not be accountable before God for this neglect?  And now, ignoring me suffering in even greater affliction, will you not be liable for even greater judgement?¹  But if you are afraid of the command of the elder, know that I will keep this matter absolutely secret, and no-one shall hear of it.”  With these words John was persuaded and composed for him a melodious funeral hymn², which even today is sung by everyone: ‘All human things are pointless.’

28.  John is cast out by his master.

One day, when John’s superior³ was away from the cell, John was inside the cell and singing the aforementioned hymn softly, when the elder returned and heard that musical sound; and in great anger he said to John, “Have you forgotten your initial vows?  Instead of mourning and being downcast, you sit at ease, indulging yourself with melodies!”  But he [John] explained the reason to the elder, and spoke of the grief of the one who had made him do it, and fell prostrate and begged forgiveness.  But the elder stood firm, like a stone or an anvil, not yielding at all to the one who was begging, and immediately cast him out of the cell.

29.

That remarkable man immediately called to mind the ancestral disobedience [of our first parents]⁴ and the expulsion from Paradise because of it.  He did not know what to do or where to turn, and he grieved even more than the one who had lost his brother, and he said as follows to himself, “That man indeed lost his brother, but I have destroyed my own soul through disobedience.”  Finally he approached other elders whom he knew to be of outstanding virtue, and put them forward as mediators, to speak to the elder and intercede, so that he might be persuaded and forgive John for his offence.  So those men went and interceded, but he did not yield, unmoved like a statue, nor did he permit the disciple to enter the cell.

*    *    *    *

Serious stuff, given that John was now penniless.

1. This sentence does not seem to be translated by Lequien.[↩]
2. “τροπάριον.”[↩]
3. “καθηγούμενος.”[↩]
4. Addition in the Latin of Lequien, but not in the Greek.[↩]

The story so far.  John has decided to abandon his high-powered job in Damascus after the caliph chopped off his hand on (fake) treason charges. Even though the Theotokos has healed him, and the caliph has decided that he must be innocent after all, he’s hitting the road for the monastery of Mar Saba.  Very wisely, no doubt.

*    *    *    *

22.  He distributes his wealth and possessions.

Two of the Lord’s commands were set before him; the one that ordained selling one’s possessions and distributing them to the poor, and the other that prescribed leaving behind houses, fields, and everything else for the sake of the Lord’s name. He did not hesitate to do the first, in order to avoid procrastination. The second he carried out, but not in such a way that, by abandoning his possessions¹, quarrels might arise and many disputes, among those related to him by blood, with different people asserting different rights to inherit.  Instead, he took a middle course between the two, distributing his possessions to the poor, to captives, and to his own slaves, whom he also deemed worthy of freedom, while dedicating some to his relatives and to the holy temples.  As he had come naked from his mother’s womb, so he left this world naked, retaining only the necessary garments.  Departing for Jerusalem, he performed the appropriate acts of worship in those sacred places, and, thirsting for God like a deer, he went into the desert.   He arrived at the lavra of the God-bearing Saba, accompanied not only in his journey but also in his purpose by Cosmas, who had shared in his spiritual ascent and education.  You might say that they were a sacred pair, running together under the yoke of Christ, to carry it upon their shoulders.

23.  John is received by the shepherd of the monastery.²

So John, the subject of this narrative, entered the divine sheepfold, and fell at the feet of the shepherd, earnestly begging to take the vow as one of the sheep there, calling himself lost, and just now returning from the desolate mountains to Christ the Shepherd.  The leader of the flock rejoiced over him and declared his choice blessed.  And since he was distinguished by the importance of his life and his exceptional knowledge, he decided that it was worthwhile to entrust the novice to one of the principal elders, so that, under such a guide, he might walk safely in the path of God [without danger of error]³.  Therefore he first summoned the one whom he considered the most distinguished among the monks of the monastery in all virtues, and attempted to entrust John to him.  But he refused, claiming that he was not equal to the pastoral care of such a man, who had acquired a great reputation for his wisdom.  The chief shepherd dismissed this elder, and summoned another.  But the second one said the same things as the first.  Then a third was brought in after them, and after him, not a few others.  And with one voice, they all began to decline responsibility for [instructing] John.

24.  He is handed over to an elder to be instructed.

After many others, another elder was introduced, simple in manner but great in knowledge. Willingly he received the eager John, and went with him to his own cell.  There, he first laid down an excellent foundation: that he should do nothing according to his own will, but to offer to God [as a sacrifice]⁴ the sweat of the prayers produced through their intensity and effort, to weep, striving for purification from his former life: for they are considered by Christ as a pure sacrifice, more pleasing than any other incense.  This was the first instruction regarding those things performed through the body.  But regarding those things which concern the soul, [he instructed him]⁵ not to imagine⁶ any worldly images, nor to form within his soul the images of things that are unsuitable; to keep his mind free from all empty pride; and not to be puffed up by the abundance of his learning, nor to think that he has fully comprehended everything that he has studied.  He should not desire visions or secret revelations,  nor should he allow his mind to become proud; nor should he ever place his trust in himself or believe that he possesses infallible knowledge until the separation of his soul from his body⁷; but rather he should recognize that his own thoughts are weak and premature, and that his own insights are uncertain; and he urged him to strive to avoid his thoughts being scattered, but to concentrate most carefully, so that in this way his mind would be enlightened by God, his soul cleansed, and his body purified; and finally the body together with the soul may be united to the mind and the threefold [being] may become a single [being], through union with the most single Trinity; and man may become no longer carnal nor animal⁸ but wholly spiritual [in nature], when the two former states have been transformed by a conscious choice into the third and highest, namely the mind.

Thus, the father set down these instructions to the son, and the teacher to the disciple. But he also added this, saying, “Do not write a letter to anyone.  Do not say anything at all of external matters. Practice silence with understanding. For you know that this is not only a commandment of our own philosophers, but also that this Pythagoras of Samos imposed many years of silence upon his disciples who were newly initiated into the mysteries of philosophy.  And do not think that it is good to speak good things, at an inappropriate time, but in this matter let David be your guide, who says, ‘I kept silent about good things.'⁹ And what happened to him because of this? Listen to him speak. ‘My heart grew hot within me'¹⁰—surely with the fire of divine love; indeed, it was through constant meditation that this fire was kindled within the prophet.”

25. 

The elder gave these instructions to John, and it was not like writing on water, or sowing on rocky ground, but upon good soil.  Then some time passed, as John was being trained by the elder through every trial, and was demonstrating unwavering obedience in all things.  And there was no argument from John regarding what was commanded of him.  There was no murmuring on his tongue, nor any debate in his heart, any inquiring within himself into what his master prescribed for him.  But this alone he had inscribed within his mind, as if deep-cut on tablets: to do, as Paul exhorts, whatever was commanded without murmuring or questioning.  For what benefit is there in doing any kind of good, if murmuring sits on one’s lips, or evil arguments in one’s heart like a serpent?  When will the soul be improved, for someone serving like this?  When will he make progress?  Indeed this is perhaps the reason that many toil in pursuit of virtue, but they toil in vain, not making progress towards what they aim at.

*    *    *    *

The monks are clearly hesitant about teaching this big shot the way of suffering and abstinence.  As you would, when the guy has the ear of the caliph and a great reputation for learning.  This could end pretty badly.  Fortunately John is sincere.  And definitely not going back.

1. Lit. “leaving these things to chance.”[↩]
2. ”ποιμήν” = pastor, teacher, shepherd.[↩]
3. Present in the Latin translation, but not in the Greek.[↩]
4. This only in the Latin, as an explanation.[↩]
5. Not in the Greek, but implicit, and present in the Latin.[↩]
6. Lit. “paint, depict.”[↩]
7. Lit. “until he is divided.”[↩]
8. ψυχικός.[↩]
9. Ps. 39:2.[↩]
10. Ps. 39:3.[↩]

The story so far.  John Damascene has been working as CFO for the Muslim caliph in Damascus.  In his spare time he has been writing a series of hard-hitting articles in the Constantinople press, attacking the Byzantine president emperor Leo for promoting iconoclasm.  Words like “anti-Christ”  are getting used.  Leo’s PR department responds by doxxing him to the caliph using a fake and treasonous letter.  The caliph falls for it, and initiates cut-backs in John’s department – specifically paring John’s writing hand to the wrist.  Now read on.

    *    *    *    *

18.  John asks  the Mother of God to restore his hand, in anacreontic verses.

As evening fell, and John supposed that the tyrant’s anger had subsided, he sent a representative to him, pleading and speaking thus, “My pain is increasing and has become unbearable. The sharp sting of my suffering will not cease as long as my severed hand remains suspended in the air. Therefore, command that it to be given to me, so that I may bury it in the earth, and the agony may subside.” The tyrant immediately allowed the request, and the hand was given to the righteous man. Having received it, he entered the oratory of his house and, falling prostrate before a certain sacred icon bearing the divine likeness of the Mother of God¹, he placed his severed right hand upon its former joint, and, he prayed from the depths of his heart, crying out with sighs and tears,

O Lady, most holy Mother, You who gave birth to my God,
For the sake of the holy icons, My right hand was cut off.
You are not unaware of the cause For which Leo went mad.
Hasten, then, with all speed And heal my hand.
The right hand of the Most High, Who took flesh from you,
Works many wonders Through your intercession.
Now, through your prayers, Let Him also heal this right hand of mine,
So that the hymns to you which you give me, And to the One incarnate from you,
May be written in harmonious melodies, O Mother of God,
And become an instrument For Orthodox worship.
For you can accomplish whatever you will, Since you are the Mother of God.

While John was saying these words with tears, he fell asleep. In his sleep, he saw the holy icon of the Mother of God looking at him with merciful and joyful eyes, and saying, “Behold, your hand has been made whole.  Delay no longer, but make it the pen of a swift-writing scribe,² as you have promised me today.”

19.  John’s severed hand Is healed by the prayers of Mary.

He awoke, and was healed, and he examined carefully the severed hand, and on seeing it he rejoiced in the spirit in God his Saviour and in His Mother, because the Mighty One had done great things for him. Rising to his feet, he lifted his hands on high and sang a divine hymn most fitting for the occasion.  Throughout the whole night, he with his whole household rejoiced and sang a new song of thanksgiving to God, “Your right hand, O Lord,” he said, “has been glorified in strength; Your right hand has healed my broken right hand, and through it, you will crush the enemy, those who do not honour the venerable icons of Yourself and those of Her who bore You.  By the abundance of your glory, you will crush the enemy icon-breakers through my hand.”  So that night was like day to him, a light and not darkness;³ and, to express the prophetic word with a figure of speech,⁴ there was there the pure sound of celebration and the voice of exultation in the tent of the righteous man.⁵

These things did not take place in secret, nor in silence; rather, that marvellous sound and harmonious jubilation was heard by those in the whole surrounding neighbourhood.  Immediately some of the Christ-hating Saracens went to their own leader, saying that John’s right hand had not been cut off at all, but that of someone else—perhaps a slave or some other attendant who had, out of loyalty, sacrificed himself in place of his master, and that those ordered to carry out the amputation had taken money instead of inflicting the penalty. “For John remains at home, singing and rejoicing in such a way that you might say that he was celebrating a wedding, and composing a bridal song for the marriage hymns. Indeed, his joy seems even greater than that.”

20.  The barbarian recognizes the miracle.

When these things had been reported in this way, John was summoned.  On his arrival, he was ordered to show his severed right hand; and as it was displayed, by the arrangement of the Mother of God, a faint line of the cut also was visible, as a most undeniable sign that the amputation had indeed taken place.  At this, the barbarian exclaimed: “Who is the physician that has healed you, John?  And what medicines were applied to you?”  Then he [John] in a loud and clear voice proclaimed the miracle.⁶ “My Lord,” he declared, “the Almighty Physician, whose power does not fall short of His will.”  The barbarian responded, “Then I infer, O man, that you have suffered for something of which you are innocent.  Forgive us, then, for the rash and thoughtless judgment, because of which we inflicted this punishment upon you.  Go, then, and take charge of your former office; and you will be foremost among our advisors.  From now on, we will undertake nothing without your advice and guidance.”

21.  He obtains permission to withdraw into a monastery instead, although with difficulty.

Then he [John] fell to the ground and prostrated himself, and, lying face-down for a considerable time, he pleaded to be excused and allowed to take another road, more desirable to journey upon, and to follow Him who says, “I am the Way.”  But the barbarian did not grant permission. And it was like seeing gladiators, as one might say, the barbarian and the righteous man.  The former strove by many ways to hold John fast in the chains of the world, while the other was fiercely trying to break them apart with zeal, and to take flight on angelic wings.  A great stadium then lay open, where Christ was seated as judge of the contest, the audience was the angels.  Indeed one might rightly say that the wicked spirits on the left side emboldened and strengthened the persuasiveness of the barbarian.  Yet with great acclaim my gladiator conquered, and all the adversary’s persuasive efforts were reckoned as [nothing more than] the [feeble] arrows of infants.  The victor departed, his head adorned with a radiant crown, and entered his home with a joyful countenance, though he had left it previously downcast.

    *    *    *    *

The wisdom of John’s decision to get out of the job will be understood by anyone who has worked in an office!

1. Θεομήτωρ.[↩]
2. Ps.44/45:1-2.[↩]
3. The Latin translation of Lequien expresses this idea twice; presumably the translator’s eye skipped back a phrase, and was not checked later.[↩]
4. ὑπαλλαγή[↩]
5. Here the chapter numbering diverges.  Lequien numbers the next paragraph “20”, and the next two sections are both numbered “21”.  I have followed the numbering of the Patrologia Graeca reprint, which is the Greek text used in the TLG.  This makes Lequien’s “20” the second part of “19”, and then the first “21” as “20.”[↩]
6. lit. “became the herald of the miracle.”[↩]

Let us continue with the “Jerusalem Life” of John Damascene.  I had not realised that I had completed – but not posted – three more chapters before my hand injury, so only chapter 17 is new.  A quick recap: John is living in Damascus and working as chief financial officer for the muslim caliph.  Now read on!

    *    *    *    *

14.  The madness of Leo the Isaurian against images.

At that time Leo the Isaurian was ruling the Roman Empire.  He, opposing the sacred icons and the orthodox mainstream of the church, ¹ was like a lion, ravening and roaring, burning them² with a fire of bestial madness, seizing and destroying their² worshippers, and cruelly tearing them apart with the teeth of tyrannical impiety.  These things came to John’s ears, and he imitated the zeal of Elijah and the rebukes [of wrong-doing] of his namesake [John the Baptist] as if the spirit had anointed him invisibly, and, before his ordination,³ as an opponent of this impiety; and he wielded words as though they were the sword of the Spirit, a sharp weapon to destroy the doctrine of the beast-minded one, as if he were cutting off its head.  He sent out letters to defend the veneration of the sacred icons to those of the right faith⁴ who knew him, powerfully demonstrating in a philosophical way that the veneration of the divine images was necessary.  He also instructed them to say the same things to others, and to show his letters to everyone.  The new athlete of the truth laboured in every way for his letters to pass from hand to hand among the faithful, as if in a circle,⁵ to strengthen the true faith,⁶ and, following the example of Paul, he laboured to cover the whole world, although not on foot but through letters proclaiming the truth.

15.  Leo’s strategem against John.

These things were reported to the emperor Leo, and, summoning some of his like-minded associates, because he could not bear the exposure of his impiety, which John’s letters proclaimed clearly, he commanded them to put on a mask of piety and make haste and fabricate a story, and locate a letter written by John in his own hand.  These accomplices of wickedness did not cease pulling on every rope, concealing their intentions and seeking out what they had been ordered to find, until they did find it, and delivered it to the emperor.  He summoned some of his scribes and set before them examples of John’s letters, to imitate the style of the writing, both in thought and phrasing.  Thus he found sufficient people to carry out this task, and he ordered them to write a letter as if from John to himself, the infamous emperor, with the following contents:

“Greetings, O emperor!  I also rejoice in your mightiness, because we share the same faith.  I render both gratitude and the appropriate respect to your imperial majesty, for which reason I send these things for your information.  This city of ours happens to have been completely neglected in terms of its defence, and the military force of the Hagarenes here is weak and few in number.  Wherefore in the name of God take pity on this city, and, contrary to all expectation, send a powerful and numerous force which pretends to march elsewhere, and you will  take the city without a fight; for I myself will assist you considerably in this purpose, because both the entire region and the city itself are under my authority.”

16.  Leo’s letter to the Caliph.

After this letter had been written, the impious man wrote another letter in malice to the ruler of the Saracens in Damascus, with this intent:

“As I know of nothing more blessed than peace, nor more fortunate than friendship, and since keeping treaties of peace is praiseworthy and pleasing to God, for these reasons I prefer above all else to preserve unbroken the peaceful friendships which I have established with your eminence, although I have often been urged to secretly break these and treacherously violate the treaties, by one of the Christians serving under you through his many letters, who confidently assures me that he would contribute greatly to subdue the city under your control if I should send a large army against it.

For this very reason I have also sent back to you one of the letters which he sent to me, showing that the things which I have written are true, so that you may know what kind of person I am in regard to friendships – truthful, and not inclined to break treaties – and so that you may recognise the ill-will and deceitfulness of the one who dared to write these things to me.”

17.  John’s right hand is amputated.

He was lion-named, and serpent-like in deceit, so he sent both these letters through one of his men to the barbarian [ruler].  Upon receiving them, the latter summoned John and showed him that deceitful letter.  John, reading through it, admitted that the shape⁷ of the handwriting resembled his own, but he added that he did not recognise the things contained in them at all, nor had such thoughts ever even crossed his mind.  Having read it, he did not fail to recognise the deception, and the plot of the Emperor [against him].  But that ruler, who hated Christ, was like a donkey listening to a lyre, as the proverb says⁸, in his response to what was said  by John. He became deaf to good and truthful speech, and did not remain dumb, when it came to issuing an unjust decree.  Instead he immediately ordered that John’s right hand should be cut off.

When he [John] requested a brief delay in order to defend himself, and to explain the rage of the impious one against him, the barbarian refused, and would not hear of it, being completely beside himself with anger.  And so the right hand was cut off, which had performed great deeds for the Orthodox in God through what it had written; the right hand was cut off which had rebuked those who hated the Lord and, instead of being dipped in ink, as it had once been when writing in defence of the veneration of icons, it was now dipped in its own blood.

After cutting off that right hand of the Lord, so to speak, they suspended it in the marketplace.

    *    *    *    *

Not one of John’s better days at work, I would guess.

1. “τῆς Ἐκκλησίας πληρώματος”: this appears to be a standard phrase, lit. “fullness of the church,” the faithful, the assembly.[↩]
2. The icons.[↩][↩]
3. “anointing.”[↩]
4. “orthodox.”[↩]
5. “ὡς διὰ κύκλου τινὸς.”  Not translated by Lequien.[↩]
6. “the orthodox faith.”[↩]
7. τύπους[↩]
8. This is one of Aesop’s fables[↩]

Here are the next four chapters of the “Jerusalem Life” of John Damascene.  John Damascene’s father has met an educated Italian slave named Cosmas in the market in Damascus, and employs him to teach his sons philosophy.

    *    *    *    *

10.  John’s Father Frees Cosmas and Entrusts His Sons to Him.¹

On hearing these words, the man² who was seeking such a treasure replied, “Well then, O blessed man, console yourself, for perhaps the Lord may grant you the requests of your heart.”  Having said this, John’s father ran as fast as he could to the Saracen ruler and fell at his feet, requesting the now quiet distinguished Cosmas as a gift, nor did he fail in his request, but he received the one truly worthy of much as a gift, and brought him into his own house, comforted him, and refreshed him after his long ordeal, and said something like this, “Not only are you free from now on, but also I make you a partner in my household, and equal in authority with me, sharing all my joys and sorrows. But this only I request of you, in honour your honour, that you instruct and educate most diligently my natural son John, and also this other who shares your name – whom I have made my spiritual son, who was born in Jerusalem but orphaned at a young age – all the secular learning and philosophy that you know, as well as that to which the grace of the Holy Spirit guides the worthy.”³  The philosopher, upon hearing this, was at once like a horse galloping away from its restraints and prancing across the field, or a thirsty deer sent out towards streams of water.  You might say that he was like another Midas who had stumbled upon great treasures of gold.  He was very eager for the matter at hand, and he took on the young men, and became their tutor.

11.  John and Cosmas the Younger gain expertise in theology.

John was like an eagle, soaring through the air, as if using wings, and with natural ability and zeal of purpose.  And his spiritual brother, and fellow initiate, Cosmas, was like a ship with sails spread wide, and borne like a cargo vessel upon the waters, [propelled] by a favourable breeze⁴ and with a west wind blowing from the stern.  Thus, by natural quickness and intensity of zeal, they gathered all the most important teaching in a short time, whether in grammar, dialectic or demonstration.  And with moral philosophy, they not only cultivated their minds by means of studying this, but also calmed the disturbances of their souls.  And just like an eagle looking keenly, so did they gaze intently at the laws of nature.  They also learned mathematical proportions as skilfully as Pythagoras or Diophantus.  They were trained so well in the proof of geometry that they seemed like Euclid and those others similar to him.  In harmony, they became like those⁵ who appear to have created divine melodies for the wise.  In astronomy, as much as [pertains] to intervals, figures,⁶ and the proportions of distances, even if he [Cosmas the elder] taught only a introductory understanding for non-specialists, from what he wrote John appears to excel; and indeed so also did Cosmas.  But discussion about him [Cosmas the younger] must be left to others, for John is the subject of our praise.⁷

12.  They study theology especially.

Who would not recognize and marvel at his theological insights, and the precision of his doctrines in his foundational book—or rather, in his comprehensive book on doctrine—which one could call a code of laws of every orthodox doctrine, and [liken to] the tablets of Moses without straying from the truth.  However I know that I ought to have made praises of that book in the earlier chapters, and not here, but I have stated these things to demonstrate the education in which he was educated, and how he pursued all of it with knowledge and precision, and the marvellous thing is that he was not puffed up by knowledge, but rather, just as the noble  branches of trees, weighed down by their abundance of fruit, inclined toward the ground, so also the great John, as the fruits of learning increased upon him, began to incline, not towards the ground, but towards the depths of the philosophical sea, sailing still upon it as if on some ship of worldly endeavour.⁸  But he also longed to unload this world’s ship, and to entirely strip off the garments of bodily endeavour, and with a naked mind to swim across the sea, and dive into the deep, so that he might find the precious pearl lying hidden there. Therefore, longing for this and aiming at it, he descended to the bottom of the depths.  And he was not puffed up by his knowledge, but humbled by his desire for a more mystical wisdom.  So the intellectual lamp of his soul was filled with the oil of worldly wisdom, in order that the incorporeal light falling down from above might set fire to this light, and John might appear like a burning torch.

13.  They are returned to their father by their teacher, who retires to a monastery.  John becomes Protosymbolos.

In these circumstances, his teacher, guided towards this desire by his student, or so it seems, approached the boy’s father and said,

“Behold: your wishes are fulfilled, and the boys surpass me in wisdom.  For it was not enough for them to become equal to their teacher, but by the greatness of their nature, and their unyielding efforts, perhaps also with God increasing their gift of wisdom, they have risen above me towards the pinnacle of philosophy.  Accordingly, I am no longer needed by them from now on.  As reward for my labours, allow me to depart to a monastery, where I may scientifically⁹ seek the highest wisdom.  For the philosophy, in which I was already trained, directs me towards that [higher wisdom], and to be enriched still more by both blessings [heavenly and earthly wisdom], and to add to the earlier wisdom also that which is most separated from matter, and surpasses understanding, and which only the mind alone, completely free from the body, can be initiated into.”

John’s father was grieved at the words of the philosopher.  But he could not detain him, as otherwise it would seem as if he had held onto the wages agreed for the teaching given [to his sons].  Having provided him with the most abundant supplies for his needs, he sent him away in peace.  So he went to the monastery of Mar Saba in the desert, and remained there until his end, going to God who is Wisdom Himself.  The father of John also departed through death.  But the leader of the Saracens summoned John, and appointed him as Chief Advisor.¹⁰  But he declined because his inclination was directed elsewhere.  However he was put under sufficient pressure that he was no longer able to refuse, and was appointed to a greater office than his father.

    *    *    *    *

The Muslim caliphs made use of the existing Byzantine civil service to run the government machine and – the most important part – collect taxes, for a considerable period after the conquest.

1. This heading is not from Lequien, but just appeared from nowhere in an AI Latin translation output.[↩]
2. John’s father.[↩]
3. I am not clear about καὶ ἡ τοῦ πνεύματος χάρις τοὺς ἀξίους ἐμυσταγώγησεν so I have followed the Latin.[↩]
4. πνεῦμα = wind, breeze, breath, spirit.[↩]
5. I was unable to follow the use of the particles here.  Gk: Περὶ δὲ τὴν ἁρμονικὴν τοιοῦτοι γεγόνασιν, ὁποῖοι ἄρα ἐξ ὧν ἐμουσουργήσασαν θείων μελισμάτων τοῖς συνετοῖς καταφαίνονται.[↩]
6. ἐν διαστήμασι καὶ σχηματισμοῖς.[↩]
7. ἐγκωμίων[↩]
8. The sense is that he was still using the works of mankind to investigate the truths of philosophy, but wanted to go beyond this.[↩]
9. ἐπιστημονικός; Lequien “certis regulis”, “by fixed rules.”[↩]
10. πρωτοσύμβουλος, perhaps a financial post.[↩]