pattern of penitence. And after his holy resurrection Christ made good
this three-fold denial with the three-fold question, 'Peter, lovest
thou me?', the Apostle answering, 'Yea, Lord, thou knowest that I love
thee.'

"So from all these and many other examples beyond count we learn the
virtue of tears and repentance. Only the manner thereof must be noted
it must arise from a heart that abominateth sin and weepeth, as saith
the prophet David, 'I am weary of my groaning: every night will I wash
my bed and water my couch with my tears.' Again the cleansing of sins
will be wrought by the blood of Christ, in the greatness of his
compassion and the multitude of the mercies of that God who saith,
'Though your sins be as scarlet, I will make them white as snow,' and
so forth.

"Thus therefore it is, and thus we believe. But after receiving the
knowledge of the truth and winning regeneration and adoption as sons,
and tasting of the divine mysteries, we must strive hard to keep our
feet lest we fall. For to fall becometh not the athlete, since many
have fallen and been unable to rise. Some, opening a door to sinful
lusts, and clinging obstinately to them, have no more had strength to
hasten back to repentance; and others, being untimely snatched by
death, and having not made speed enough to wash them from the pollution
of their sin, have been damned. And for this cause it is parlous to
fall into any kind of sinful affection whatsoever. But if any man
fall, he must at once leap up, and stand again to fight the good fight:
and, as often as there cometh a fall, so often must there at once ensue
this rising and standing, unto the end. For, 'Turn ye unto me, and I
will turn unto you,' saith the Lord God."

XII.

To this said Ioasaph, "But how, after baptism, shall a man keep himself
clear from all sin? For even if there be, as thou sayest, repentance
for them that stumble, yet it is attended with toil and trouble, with
weeping and mourning; things which, methinks, are not easy for the many
to accomplish. But I desired rather to find a way to keep strictly the
commandments of God, and not swerve from them, and, after his pardoning
of my past misdeeds, never again to provoke that most sweet God and
Master."

Barlaam answered, "Well said, my lord and king. That also is my
desire; but it is hard, nay quite impossible, for a man living with
fire not to be blackened with smoke: for it is an uphill task, and one
not e