9. Those who aim to practise the life of virtue and holiness should not
incur condemnation by pretending to a piety which they do not possess. But like
painters and sculptors they should manifest their virtue and holiness through
their works, and should shun all evil pleasures as snares.
10. A wealthy
man of good family, who lacks inward discipline and all virtue in his way of
life, is regarded by those with spiritual understanding as under an evil
influence; likewise a man who happens to be poor or a slave, but is graced with
discipline of soul and with virtue in his life, is regarded as blessed. And
just as strangers travelling in a foreign country lose their way, so those who
do not cultivate the life of virtue are led astray by their desires and get
completely lost.
11. Those who
can train the ignorant and inspire them with a love for instruction and
discipline should be called moulders of men. So too should those who reform the
dissolute, remodelling their life to one of virtue, conforming to God's will.
For gentleness and self-control are a blessing and a sure hope for the souls of
men.
12. A man should
strive to practise the life of virtue in a genuine way; for when this is
achieved it is easy to acquire knowledge about God. When a man reveres God with
all his heart and with faith, he receives through God's providence the power to
control anger and desire; for it is desire and anger which are the cause of all
evils.
13. A human
being is someone who possesses spiritual intelligence or is willing to be rectified.
One who cannot be rectified is inhuman. Such people must be avoided: because
they live in vice, they can never attain immortality.
14. When the
intelligence is truly operative, we can properly be called human beings. When
it is not operative, we differ from animals only in respect of our physical
form and our speech. An intelligent man should realize that he is immortal and
should hate all shameful desires, which are the cause of death in men.
On the Character of Men and on
the Virtuous Life: One Hundred and
Seventy Texts
Attributed to St.Anthony the Great
From Filokalia
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