EN Xa: ἃ σὺν ἀγάπῃ κατορθοῦται

At this point, Cassian makes a shift from Rev. 2:2 (which is the text under analysis) to 1 Thess. 1:3. Nevertheless, the idea of ‘love’ being an ‘accomplishment’ (κατόρθωμα) is one more instance of Christian authors employing Stoic terminology. The notion of any ‘virtue’ being a ‘feat’ (κατόρθωμα) is a theme occurring abundantly in Gregory of Nyssa. So it does also in Cassian, who once again follows his Cappadocian hero. I have shown Cassian’s debts to Gregory in my edition of his works included in the same ancient codex. Certainly Stoicism in Christian authors is not uncommon; indeed the notion of ‘accomplishment’ (κατόρθωμα) appears in Didymus abundantly. However, in Didymus the association between ‘accomplishment’ (κατόρθωμα) and ‘virtue’ (ἀρετή), although definitely admired, does not enjoy the emphasis it does in Gregory of Nyssa and Cassian. Therefore, this expression is Cassian’s own and marks his wish to show that Rev. 2:2 fits well with 1 Thess. 1:3, which eventually serves to show once again that Revelation concurs with the rest of scriptural canon.

EN Xb: ἀγαπητικὴ διάθεσις

The term is notably present in Gregory of Nyssa and is used by Didymus, too. Again, the latter borrowed this from his Cappadocian hero, while the idiom does not occur in Origen. For it is in Gregory that the idea of the volatility of ‘loving disposition’ appears at various points.