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This man therefore, when some of the brethren Were wondering at the
splendid light of his knowledge and were asking of him some meanings of
Scripture, said that a monk who wanted to acquire a knowledge of the
Scriptures ought not to spend his labour on the works of commentators, but
rather to keep all the efforts of his mind and intentions of his heart
set on purifying himself from carnal vices: for when these are driven out,
at once the eyes of the heart, as if the veil of the passions were removed,
will begin as it were naturally to gaze on the mysteries of Scripture:
since they were not declared to us by the grace of the Holy Spirit in order
that they should remain unknown and obscure; but they are rendered obscure
by our fault, as the veil of our sins covers the eyes of the heart, and
when these are restored to their natural state of health, the mere reading
of Holy Scripture is by itself amply sufficient for beholding the true
knowledge, nor do they need the aid of commentators, just as these eyes of
flesh need no man's teaching how to see, provided that they are free from
dimness or the darkness of blindness. For this reason there have arisen so
great differences and mistakes among commentators because most of them,
paying no sort of attention towards purifying the mind, rush into the work
of interpreting the Scriptures, and in proportion to the density or
impurity of their heart form opinions that are at variance with and
contrary to each other's and to the faith, and so are unable to take in the
light of truth.
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