Section 41

“Since I have made myself foolish by recounting these things, receive this also as something that can help make you safe and fearless. And believe me, for I am not lying.

“Once someone knocked at the door of my cell. I went out and saw a figure that appeared extraordinarily large and tall. When I asked, ‘Who are you?’ he answered, ‘I am Satan.’

“I said, ‘Why are you here?’ He replied, ‘Why do the monks and all the other Christians blame me for no reason? Why do they curse me every hour?’

“I answered, ‘Why do you trouble them?’

“He said, ‘I am not the one troubling them. They trouble themselves. I have become weak. Have they not read, “The swords of the enemy have failed completely, and you have destroyed the cities”? I no longer have a place, a weapon, or a city. Christians are everywhere, and now even the desert is filled with monks. Let them watch themselves and stop cursing me without cause.’

“I marveled at the grace of the Lord and said to him, ‘You are always a liar and never speak the truth, but now at last, against your will, you have spoken truly. The coming of Christ has made you weak. He has cast you down and stripped you of your power.’

“When he heard the Savior’s name, he could not endure its burning power and vanished.