deviate from this straight way and to fall again into the hands of our
enemy, the devil.
Whoever after baptism deliberately submits to the will of the devil
and carries out his wishes, estranges himself - to adapt David's words
- from the holy womb of baptism (cf. Ps. 58:3). None of us can be
estranged or alienated from the nature with which we are created. We
are created good by God - for God creates nothing evil - and we
remain unchanging in our nature and essence as created. But we do
what we choose and want, whether good or bad, of our own free will.
Just as a knife does not change its nature, but remains iron whether
used for good or for evil, so we, as has been said, act and do what we
want without departing from our own nature.
The gift which we have received from Jesus Christ in holy baptism is
not destroyed, but is only buried as a treasure in the ground. And
both common sense and gratitude demand that we should take good
care to unearth this treasure and bring it to light. This can be done in
two ways. The gift of baptism is revealed first of all by a painstaking
fulfillment of the commandments; the more we carry these out, the
more clearly the gift shines upon us in its true splendor and brilliance.
Secondly, it comes to light and is revealed through the continual
invocation of the Lord Jesus, or by unceasing remembrance of God,
which is one and the same thing.
Are we only dying with the Master and are we only sharing in His
sadness? Most of all, let me say that sharing the Master's death is no
sadness. Only wait a little and you shall see yourself sharing in His
benefits. 'For if we have died with Him,' says St. Paul, `we believe
that we shall also live together with Him.' For in baptism there are
both burial and resurrection together at the same time. He who is