Bishop Solomon: The Book of the Bee

Essential Quotes

“‘When thou findest honey, eat (only) so much as is sufficient for thee, lest, when thou art sated, thou vomit it;’ that is to say, do not enquire (too closely) into the divine words.”

“As the natural child in the womb of his mother knows not her who bears him, nor is conscious of his father, who, after God, is the cause of his formation; so also Adam, being in the mind of the Creator, knew Him not. And when he was created, and recognised himself as being created, he remained with this knowledge six hours only, and there came over him a change, from knowledge to ignorance and from good to evil.”

“The foundation of all good and precious things, of all the greatness of God’s gifts, of His true love, and of our arriving in His presence, is Death.”

“No one who does not obtain remission (of sins) in this world can be free from the penalty of examination in that day. Not that there is torture or pleasure or recompense before the resurrection; but the soul knows everything it has done whether of good or evil.”

“The penalty of Gehenna is a man’s mind; for the punishment there is of two kinds, that of the body and that of the mind. That of the body is perhaps in proportion to the degree of sin, and He lessens and diminishes its duration; but that of the mind is for ever, and the judgment is for ever.”