Nilus of Ancyra→Dracontius (correspondent of Nilus of Ancyra)|c. 415 AD|nilus ancyra|From Ancyra|AI-assisted
To Dracontius the Monk.
Christ takes delight when we constrain him, that he may remain with us. Now that the light of virtue has dawned upon us, let us therefore constrain him, just as Cleopas did [Luke 24:29, the disciple at Emmaus who urged Christ to stay], that he may abide together with us, and recline at table with our meanness and with our lowliness, and break the divine bread, and bestow it upon our soul. And nothing is more constraining than prayer, which often forces even the appointed times. For prayer is all-powerful and unconquerable, even as the devil too strives eagerly to hinder us with the most grievous and burdensome temptations, so that, as though gaining no benefit, we may let go the weapon of the greatly profitable and saving prayer that is in Christ.
Christ takes delight when we constrain him, that he may remain with us. Now that the light of virtue has dawned upon us, let us therefore constrain him, just as Cleopas did [Luke 24:29, the disciple at Emmaus who urged Christ to stay], that he may abide together with us, and recline at table with our meanness and with our lowliness, and break the divine bread, and bestow it upon our soul. And nothing is more constraining than prayer, which often forces even the appointed times. For prayer is all-powerful and unconquerable, even as the devil too strives eagerly to hinder us with the most grievous and burdensome temptations, so that, as though gaining no benefit, we may let go the weapon of the greatly profitable and saving prayer that is in Christ.
AI-assisted translation - This translation was produced with AI assistance and has not been peer-reviewed. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek below for scholarly use.