Novices not hlack-Jledged in humility waitforfood. 387 they have begun to get black, it seeks the more eagerly for Book food to be given them, the longer it has deferred feedinar-^-^ — -^ '^ . . , ^ MOR.them. Every learned preacher, who cries with a loud voice, whilst he carries the memory of his own sins and the know- ledge of his own infirmity, as a kind of black shade of colour, is doubtless a raven. To whom disciples indeed are born in the faith, but perhaps they still do not know how to consider their own infirmity : perchance they turn away their memory from their past sins, and thus display not that blackness of humility which ought to be assumed against the pride of this world. But they open their mouth, as it were, to receive food, when they seek to be instructed in sublime secrets. But their own teacher supplies them the more scantily with the food of sublime instruction, the more he perceives that they bewail inadequately their past sins. He waits for them in truth, and warns them, first to become black, from the brightness of this life, by the lamentations of penitence, and then to receive afterwards the suitable nourishment of most subtle preaching. The raven beholds in the young ones their gaping mouths, but he first looks for their bodies to be covered with the blackness of wings. So too a discreet teacher imparts not inward mysteries to the understanding of those, whom he considers to have not yet in any way cast themselves off from this world. The less black then his disciples are, as it w^ere, outwardly, through devotion to the present life, the less are they filled with the food ofthe word within : and the less they strip them- selves of bodily glory, the more are they bereft of spiritual refreshment. 34. But if in the confession of their past life, they put forth the groans of their lamentation, as darkening plumage, the teacher immediately flies in contemplation, to bringdown food from on high, as a raven thinking of the refreshment of its young ones ; and brings back to them in his mouth the food they are gaping for: whilst with that wisdom which he has begun^ he supplies by his teachinp^ the food of life to his J ^^• . 1 'gotten,'hungry disciples. And he refreshes them the more eagerly from above, the more truly he perceives that, by the lament- ation of penitence, they are turning black from the brightness of the world.