Andrew Louth - Syriac Christian Church

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bitter and most acrid bile is found.
48
Contemplation of the different forms of leprosy
according to the law 130
TEXTS 149
And again this is what I think is wisely suggested in the place
concerning leprosy through symbolic riddles. The disease of
leprosy is divided into four kinds by colour: white, green,
yellow and dim. Through these the incensive and desiring
powers divided into their kinds are indicated, the desiring part
by the white and green, clearly divided into pleasure and grief,
and the incensive part by the yellow and dim, divided into
anger and resentment and the hidden malice of hypocrisy.
These are the principal kinds of the passions and the
absolutely original offspring of the incensive and desiring
powers, by which the soul is diseased and, so long as it is
spotted with them, is not to be numbered among those worthy
of the divine company.
49
Contemplation of Phinees
And this is what I think is suggested by the story of the
wonderful Phinees and his zeal. 131 When he strikes down the
Midianite woman together with the Israelite with his spear,
the hidden meaning is that matter should be expelled together
with form, and desire with the incensive power, and foreign
pleasure with the empassioned train of thought, by the power
of reason, the high- priest, from the soul completely. For form
provides matter a way of being, as the incensive power does to
desire, by approaching it giving movement to something that
by itself is unmoved, and so does a train of thought to pleasure,
giving form to something that by its own nature exists without
form or shape. And this makes clear the power of names. For
the Midianite woman was called Chasbi, which means tickling
my fancy, and the Israelite Zambri, which means my song,
that is uplifting. 132 Since then the rational part of the soul has
turned away from meditation of the divine and from gazing on
him, and, lifted up by the material tickling of the flesh, has
become entangled in the furnace of sin, there is need for the
zealous high-priest, reason, to destroy those that are wickedly
entangled with each other, and to turn aside the wrath of God
that is bearing down.