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Banquet of the Ten Virgins

Methodius of Olympus

Chapter 13

About this work

A literary symposium in which ten women offer speeches on virginity, creation, Scripture, virtue, and Christian perfection, consciously adapting the form of a classical philosophical banquet.

Author: Methodius of Olympus
Date: Late 3rd century
Origin: Eastern Mediterranean
Genre: Dialogue

Chapter XIII.—The Seven Crowns of the Beast to Be Taken Away by Victorious Chastity; The Ten Crowns of the Dragon, the Vices Opposed to the Decalogue; The Opinion of Fate the Greatest Evil.

Therefore, taking to you a masculine and sober

‹ Chapter 12 Chapter 14 ›

mind

,

oppose

your

armour

to

the

swelling

beast

,

and

do

not

at

all

give

way

,

nor

be

troubled

because

of

his

fury

.

For

you

will

have

immense

glory

if

you

overcome

him

,

and

take

away

the

seven

crowns

which

are

upon

him

,

on

account

of

which

we

have

to

struggle

and

wrestle

,

according

to

our

teacher

Paul

.

For

she

who

having

first

overcome

the

devil

,

and

destroyed

his

seven

heads

,

becomes

possessed

of

the

seven

crowns

of

virtue

,

having

gone

through

the

seven

great

struggles

of

chastity

.

For

incontinence

and

luxury

is

a

head

of

the

dragon

;

and

whoever

bruises

this

is

wreathed

with

the

crown

of

temperance

.

Cowardice

and

weakness

is

also

a

head

;

and

he

who

treads

upon

this

carries

off

the

crown

of

martyrdom

.

Unbelief

and

folly

,

and

other

similar

fruits

of

wickedness

,

is

another

head

;

and

he

who

has

overcome

these

and

destroyed

them

carries

off

the

honours

connected

with

them

,

the

power

of

the

dragon

being

in

many

ways

rooted

up

.

Moreover

,

the

ten

horns

and

stings

which

he

was

said

to

have

upon

his

heads

are

the

ten

opposites

,

O

virgins

,

to

the

Decalogue

,

by

which

he

was

accustomed

to

gore

and

cast

down

the

souls

of

many

imagining

and

contriving

things

in

opposition

to

the

law

,

“

Thou

shalt

love

the

Lord

thy

God

,

”

and

to

the

other

precepts

which

follow

.

Consider

now

the

fiery

and

bitter

horn

of

fornication

,

by

which

he

casts

down

the

incontinent

;

consider

adultery

,

consider

falsehood

,

covetousness

,

theft

,

and

the

other

sister

and

related

vices

,

which

flourish

by

nature

around

his

murderous

heads

,

which

if

you

root

out

with

the

aid

of

Christ

,

you

will

receive

,

as

it

were

,

divine

heads

,

and

will

bloom

with

the

crowns

gained

from

the

dragon

.

For

it

is

our

duty

to

prefer

and

to

set

forward

the

best

things

,

who

have

received

,

above

the

earth

-

born

,

a

commanding

and

voluntary

mind

,

and

one

free

from

all

necessity

,

so

as

to

make

choice

like

masters

of

the

things

which

please

us

,

not

being

in

bondage

to

fate

or

fortune

.

And

so

no

man

would

be

master

of

himself

and

good

,

unless

selecting

the

human

example

of

Christ

,

and

bringing

himself

to

the

likeness

of

Him

,

he

should

imitate

Him

in

his

manner

of

life

.

For

of

all

evils

the

greatest

which

is

implanted

in

many

is

that

which

refers

the

causes

of

sins

to

the

motions

of

the

stars

,

and

says

that

our

life

is

guided

by

the

necessities

of

fate

,

as

those

say

who

study

the

stars

,

with

much

insolence

.

For

they

,

trusting

more

in

guessing

than

in

prudence

,

that

is

,

in

something

between

truth

and

falsehood

,

go

far

astray

from

the

sight

of

things

as

they

are

.

Whence

,

if

you

permit

me

,

O

Arete

,

now

that

I

have

completed

the

discourse

which

you

,

my

mistress

,

appointed

to

be

spoken

,

I

will

endeavour

,

with

your

assistance

and

favour

,

to

examine

carefully

the

position

of

those

who

are

offended

,

and

deny

that

we

speak

the

truth

,

when

we

say

that

man

is

possessed

of

free

-

will

,

and

prove

that

“They perish self-destroyed,

By their own fault,”

choosing the pleasant in preference to the expedient.

Arete. I do permit you and assist you; for your discourse will be perfectly adorned when you have added this to it.

Notes

1
Deut. vi. 5.
2
Hom., Od., i. 7.