Bless the Lord, my soul. May all of our souls, united in Christ, proclaim this truth. O Lord my God, You are greatly exalted! Where do You manifest Your glory? You have adorned Yourself with splendor and majesty. Acknowledge Him so that you may be beautified, and He may further clothe you. You are dressed in light like a garment. Clothed within His church, which has transformed from darkness into light in Him, as the Apostle states: "Ye were once darkness, but now are light in the Lord." You stretch the heavens as if they were a canopy, effortlessly wrapping them around us like a garment. The authority of the Holy Scriptures encompasses the world, as they reveal our mortality yet are conveyed through mortal men, whose influence endures beyond their mortal existence.
He covers the heights with water. What are these heights? They represent the divine. What is Heaven? Conceptually, we refer to it as the Divine Scriptures. What are the heights within these Scriptures? The commandment of love, which is the highest of all. For we ask why love is akin to water. The love of God has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that He bestowed upon us. Where does this Spirit originate? It is like water, for Jesus declared: "Whoever believes in Me, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water." How do we understand that this statement pertained to the Spirit? The evangelist clarifies: "This He spoke of the Spirit, which those who believed in Him should receive." He rides upon the wings of the winds—above the virtues of the soul. What is the virtue of the soul? Love of self. Yet how does He conquer this? Because the love of God for us surpasses our love for Him.
Who transforms spirits into His angels, and makes flames of fire His ministers: those who are already spiritual beings, He sends forth as angels to preach His gospel. The flames serve Him, for a preacher who does not burn with zeal will not be able to ignite passion in others. He established the earth upon its foundations. He rooted the Church upon the strength of Christ. What, then, is the strength of the Church but the foundation that the Apostle articulated: "No man can lay any other foundation than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ." Thus, what will it hear upon such a foundation? It will not be shaken forever. He grounded the earth upon its firmness; that is, He anchored the Church upon Christ. The Church would tremble if its foundation were disturbed, but when can Christ—through whom everything was created, and without whom nothing came into being—be shaken? Since Christ is unshakeable, she will never be moved. Where are those who claim the Church has vanished from the earth, when she remains unscathed?
The abyss is like her veil. Whose? Could it be God's? Yet, He has said, "Clothed with light as a garment." I hear of God adorned in light, and if we embrace this light, it becomes our own. What occurs if we desire it? We cease to be darkness. If God is clothed in light, whose veil is the abyss? The vastness of waters is termed the abyss. All waters, moist elements, and flowing substances are collectively identified as the Abyss. Thus, we discern the earth of which He declared: "He founded the earth." I believe He meant: "The abyss is like a garment to it," for water wraps around the earth and enfolds it.
The waters will rise over the mountains, signifying that the earth's garment—now the abyss—has increased to the extent that it covers even the mountains. We recall this during the flood. The prophet, wishing to foretell and not merely to recount past events, stated this to convey that the Church may find itself amidst the flood of persecution. There was a period when torrents of persecutors enveloped God's earth and His Church, obscuring the tallest figures, who could not be seen. When they were scattered everywhere, why were they hidden? Perhaps it is from these very waters that one laments: "Save me, O God, for the waters have come up to my soul." Especially the waters that roughen and desolate the sea. For land submerged by saltwater would yield barrenness rather than fertility. There were also mountains submerged, as the waters rose above them.
Why did the apostles flee? Because the waters overtook the mountains. The power of the waters was great, but how long would it persist? Listen to what follows.
By Your rebuke, they shall disperse. And indeed, beloved, by the command of God, the waters withdrew; specifically, they receded from the mountains. Now the mountains—Peter and Paul—how they have ascended! Those who once faced persecution are now esteemed as rulers. The waters fled at God's reproof, for the heart of kings is governed by God, who directs as He pleases. He has commanded peace for Christians; the authority of the Apostles has flourished. The waters dispersed at God's command. At Your thunderous voice, they tremble. Who would not tremble before God's voice, expressed through the apostles, through the Scriptures, through His heavens? The sea was calmed, the waters feared, the mountains were revealed, the emperor issued commands. But who withheld the order without divine intent? Because it was God's will, they declared, and it was fulfilled. Therefore, let no one claim merit.
The mountains ascend, and the valleys descend to the place You have appointed for them. He continues to speak of the waters. Let us not interpret mountains here in a physical sense; let us recognize that they refer to waves, symbolically akin to mountains. The sea once surged, and its waves reached heights that could have swallowed the mountains of the Apostles. But for how long do the mountains rise and the valleys fall? They roared, yet are now calmed. When they were turbulent, they were mountains; now pacified, they are plains, for He has established a place for them. There exists a channel—a profound depth into which the once tumultuous hearts of mortals have retreated. Formerly mountains, they are now plains. However, dear friends, even in stillness, it remains the sea. Why are they no longer violent? Why do they not contend, if they cannot subdue our land, at least to cover it? Why do they refrain?
Listen. You have set a boundary which they shall not surpass or retreat from to cover the earth. What, then, since the most tumultuous waves have received a limit, allows us such freedom of preaching? They have their boundaries, for they cannot exceed the appointed measure, nor will they return to cover the earth. What is transpiring on the earth now that the sea has laid it bare? Though the gentle waves sigh along its shore, and the nations murmur nearby, I hear the sounds of the shores, yet I do not fear the flood. What, then, is occurring on the earth? "You send springs into the valleys." You send, he affirms, springs to the low places among the lands. Hilly terrains and mountains contrast with valleys. Do not scorn the lowly, for from there springs flow. You send springs to the small valleys. Consider the mountains. The Apostle proclaims, "I labored more abundantly than them all." Some greatness may seem apparent, but swiftly, to allow the waters to flow, he made for himself a valley: "Yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me." There is no conflict in the notion that mountains can also be valleys. They are called mountains due to their spiritual prominence, yet valleys for their humble spirit. "Not I," he proclaims, "but the grace of God with me."
What does it signify, "In the midst of the mountains the waters shall flow"? We have discerned who the mountains are—great Preachers of the Word, exalted Angels of God, though still in mortal flesh; elevated, not by their own strength, but through His grace. As for themselves, in humility, they are valleys, pouring forth springs. "In the midst," he states, suggests that the proclamation of the Word of Truth flows through the Apostles. What is situated amidst the apostles? That which is central and communal. The common good, through which all live equally, lies in the middle, owned by none individually. If it were not centered, it would be merely private, and I would have mine while you have yours, which is no mode of sharing the message of peace.
Hence, brothers and sisters, let our preceding remarks serve you, for the springs ought to flow from you, being valleys, uniting with all that is of God. Let the waters cascade in the midst, harbor no envy, drink deeply, be filled, and let the living water of God be glorified universally, not the private fables of mankind.
Consequently, all the beasts of the forest will quench their thirst. We observe this in creation, where the forest creatures drink from the springs that flow between the mountains. However, God has concealed His wisdom within these illustrative concepts, not to deprive those who diligently seek it, but to reserve it for those who are indifferent and unveil it to those who knock. The Lord God desires to encourage you through us, indicating that within all these elements, speaking of the physical and visible creation, we ought to seek a deeper spiritual reality, which when discovered, leads to our rejoicing. By beasts of the forest, we understand the Gentiles, which Scripture corroborates in numerous instances.
These creatures partake of the waters, albeit momentarily; they do not endure, but merely pass through, for the teachings spread throughout this time are transient. Consider your thoughts in that city to which it is declared, "Praise the Lord, Jerusalem; praise your God, O Zion; for He has fortified the bars of your gates." When the gates are secured and the city sealed, from that stronghold where no friend shall exit nor enemy shall enter, we shall not merely seek a text to read, or a discourse to evaluate as presented to you now. This matter is conveyed as a way for it to be retained. It is structured into syllables so it can be contemplated in its entirety. There will be no shortage of the Word of God there, nor deficiency in letters, sounds, books, readers, or interpreters. As it is written, "In the beginning was the Word." He did not come to depart from that state; for He was in the world, and the world came into existence through Him. Such is the Word in which we should fixate. For the God of gods will manifest in Zion. But when? After our pilgrimage, when the journey is completed—unless perhaps at the end of our journey, we stand before the Judge, who may send us away. Yet if, upon journey’s end, we reach our homeland, we will behold that which we shall eternally exalt; and he who possesses, and we who partake, will find no satisfaction that quenches our hunger—neither will the one who dines exhaust his appetite, nor will he who consumes ever feel sated by his meal. Marvelous will be this contemplation.
THEOSIS