Paraphrasis in Dionysium Areopagitam

the enemy is Demophilus, so that he may be left with Satan, held by such error. Know that each of the sacred arrangements is more God-like than the one more distant, which approaches God, both in the heavens and in us. Do not wrongly understand this approach locally, but rather according to the habit and aptitude of each; for God is not in a place, as if "near" and "far" are indicated from this. If, therefore, the order of priests is illuminating, the one who is not illuminating—or rather, even the unilluminated—is not a priest, and this person seems to me bold and shameless, thinking he knows God, about which he is conscious to himself, and thinking he deceives Him whom he himself falsely calls Father, saying "Father, who art in heaven," and dares his own blasphemies; for I would not say he utters prayers over the divine symbols. This one, therefore, is not a priest, but quite the contrary. For the time being, it is not given to Demophilus to examine these things; for justly we ought to pursue just things, according to the commandment. And justice is that which is distributive according to worth to all, since even to the angels, justice is apportioned; for in all existing things, through the first, the things according to worth are apportioned to the second. Those, therefore, who are appointed to rule over others, those [leaders] shall render to those after them the things according to worth. And let Demophilus distinguish, let him divide the things according to worth: what belongs to reason, what to anger, and what to desire, which cannot happen otherwise, and each will be appropriately distinguished if reason does not begin [by ruling] the subordinate parts, I mean anger and desire. And immediately he sets the example; for reason holds the rank of master, elder, father; but anger and desire [hold the rank] of slave, younger, son. We would not, therefore, seem to be impious if, when the better things are suffering on the market by the worse, we did not help...