Theological and Ethical Discourses 1 part 20/27

If, then, as we have said, you honor him and receive him and give him room and afford him stillness, know well that you will hear from the treasures of the Spirit things unutterable — not by falling upon the Master's breast, as formerly did John, the beloved of Christ, but by bearing the very Word of God wholly within your own breast;

but if you allow some grief that has arisen from somewhere to peer within your house, joy at once takes flight;

But if anger or wrath draws near, immediately the gentle and tranquil One withdraws;

but if hatred and displeasure against someone draws near, immediately he who is called Love, and who in truth is Love by nature and hypostatically, flees away;

if you allow envy or strife to draw near, he who bears no malice and is good, abhorring these things, will become altogether invisible,

...being carried along and consenting to let these things draw near him, the simple, guileless, and unmeddling One will not even let you know of his withdrawal, but will leave you behind as one bereft of sense.

But if you, who have been deemed worthy to meet with so great a Master, who have become a beholder of such glory, who have come into possession of such riches — I mean the kingdom of heaven, which is God himself — while yet guarding yourself from all the things spoken of above so that they do not enter into the house of your soul, and even making for the King a complete stillness from these, should nevertheless turn your face, that is, your mind, elsewhere, and converse and speak with another, thereby manifestly turning your back on the unapproachable God, on whom all the heavenly hosts gaze unblinkingly with fear and trembling — will he not justly abandon you at once, as a scorner and unworthy man?

But you say that this One is a lover of mankind?

I too say this to you — but toward those who perceive his love for mankind, and honor him worthily, and give him due thanks for it.

But if, having accounted his love and its sweetness as nothing, you incline toward the love of something else, and bind the impulse of your soul wholly to it, and are pleased by some pleasure — of food, perhaps, or drink, or clothing, or a comely appearance, or gold, or silver, or the desire for some other kind of thing impresses itself deep within your soul — will he who is by nature pure and holy and undefiled, who made you such through the Spirit, at all consent to remain with you when you have thus inclined, and will he not leave you at once?

But if you do none of these things, but drive out every passion from yourself and cast far away all wickedness, banish every desire from yourself, forsake every attachment and natural affection for every man and kinsman, and attain to the perfect sinlessness and purity we described above, and besides this possess this altogether within yourself — so that what I am about to say may become clear to all — namely, one who dwells above all the heavens, troubled by nothing from anywhere nor inclining toward anyone else, but living together with God, keeping the mind above in the kingdom above the heavens — then if someone suddenly calls you and shows you here a great city with a great people in it, houses and palaces of every kind, spacious and grand, temples immense and beautiful, priests, high priests, a king together with the sacred senate and his officials and bodyguards; then — to omit every other pretext and passionate manner — if you, being summoned and entreated with tears by all of them, I mean the king and the officials and the whole multitude of the city, to take up the care of them and to shepherd and benefit them, should, before being urged by God who has appointed you to reign together with him, contemptuously abandon the things above and the eternal goods given you by him, and, descending to matters of turmoil, consort here with the corruptible and visible things together with those who summoned you — will he not justly deprive you of all those things, and leave you to have your lot and possession in these alone, both while you live and after your departure from the body?

Be not angry with me, your servant, and do not cast me down from so great a height into that chaos.

Have I sinned in some way through ignorance, Master, and is it for this reason that you turn me back to that place from which you mercifully drew me up, O compassionate One?

...that you should turn away from me to such a degree, you who have taken up my many sins and transgressions?

But if it should happen that I have sinned in something, punish me here yourself; cut me limb from limb yourself, if you so command, only do not send me away to that place.

But if he should further say to you:

'Go, turn your brothers back' — you ought again to say to him:

'Woe is me, Master — shall I, unworthy as I am, be separated from you?'

'No, but I will be with you there also' — you ought again to fall down, to weep, and, in your mind, to wet his undefiled feet with tears, and thus to say:

'How will you be with me, Master, if, once I go down there, I shall be darkened?'

'How will you live alongside me, if the inclination of my heart, being mutable, turns aside toward the flatteries and praises of men?'

'How will you consent to remain, if I am wickedly lifted up unto pride?'

'How will you not flee, if I fail to reprove kings and rulers with boldness on behalf of righteousness, and against injustice and lawlessness?'

'And how shall I do these things and the rest to please you, so that you may be with me and strengthen me, and not abandon me when I stumble, nor be separated from me, unworthy as I am, leaving me lying alone down there?'

I fear lest the rebellion of the flesh should master me, lest pleasure should deceive me, lest care should darken me, lest the honor of rulers and kings should exalt me unbecomingly, lest the swelling of authority, puffing itself up against the brethren, should lift me up, lest I be swept away by luxury and drunkenness beyond what is fitting, lest through revelry the flesh of my soul, once made lean, should again grow gross, lest the threats of men should terrify me and make me a transgressor of your commandments, lest the entreaties of fellow bishops and the injustices of friends should make me a partaker of injustice — either by keeping silent while they do wrong, or by becoming a partner in their evil deeds and failing to reprove them with boldness, and to show forth firm resistance on behalf of your commandments.

But how could I recount everything, Master?

And behold, there are countless things within me, which you, Lord, know better than I.

Do not, then, deliver me up to so many evils, O Lover of mankind.

Have mercy on me, then, O Lover of mankind, and do not send me down there to be turned about in the midst of such and so many evils.

These things, then, and more than these, you ought to have suspected beforehand, and to have entreated not to come down from heaven to the things here and to the earth.

'For since I have promised to be with you, you shall be mastered by none of all your adversaries;'

'for you shall have me as a helper in everything, and I will glorify you all the more even down there, and here again you shall return with greater and more resplendent brightness, and unto endless ages you shall reign together with me' — even then you ought not to have taken courage or been altogether free of care, but rather, with fear and trembling, as one being brought down from a height into the depth of some very deep pit full of all manner of creeping things and wild beasts, so should you have stepped into the metropolitan see, or the patriarchate, or some other office — an episcopate, perhaps, or the oversight of a people.

But if you do not confess yourself to be such as this discourse has depicted, but rather suppose that you are ascending to a height from below — O the audacity! O the darkening! O the utmost ignorance!

...the judgment-seat of God that is about to receive us.

That, then, presiding over a flock and caring for the salvation of our neighbors is beneficial, as being the fulfillment of love, which is the sum of the Law and the Prophets, no one will dispute;

for indeed Christ also, having asked Peter a third time whether he loved him, and when Peter had said, 'Yes, Lord, you know that I love you,' replied to him, 'Feed my sheep, if you love me.'

But that one ought not to leap heedlessly into this ministry, nor should just anyone do so, but that this must be done with careful circumspection and fear — this is surely quite plain to those who are not utterly darkened in the eye of the soul.

For many, not even knowing this very word — what it means — nor understanding the manner in which the Lord commanded Peter to shepherd his sheep, alas, boldly step into office, and are not ashamed to preside shamelessly over the flock of Christ.

But let us see, if you please, and consider what this word is and what its force is.

When the Lord says this to Peter, 'Feed my sheep,' does he perhaps speak of worldly patronage, or of concern for the affairs or moneys of this life, that is, for his rational sheep themselves, that through that man's diligence they might be kept safe or even come to increase?

Does he perhaps mean that he should busy himself about their food and provide them with clothing?

Does he command the apostle to bring strangers under his own roof, or to minister to the sick, or to compel all the faithful, once gathered together in one place, to be concerned with what is needful for their food and clothing?

For God commanded him none of these things.

This is clear from the very words of the Lord;

for he says to his apostles:

He, then, who legislates for them to possess nothing at all — how could he command them to give a share to others, or to be concerned at all about such things?

And again he says, 'Take heed lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the cares of this life,' and again:

'Labor not for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life' — legislating and commanding these things not to them alone, but through them to us as well, or rather other things even more numerous than these.

'Take no thought for your soul, what you shall eat or what you shall drink, nor for your body, what you shall put on.'

'But consider the lilies of the field, how they grow:'

'they toil not, neither do they spin' — and after a little he says:

'for all these things do the nations seek.'

'For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.'

'But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you;'

'therefore take no thought for tomorrow.'

Having said these things, then, and many more besides to them, he later added and said:

He, then, who does not permit anyone to be concerned about tomorrow, but commands them to seek only the kingdom of God and his righteousness — how, then, could he ever have commanded the apostle, contrary to his own precepts, to be concerned about the sustenance and clothing of his sheep, or about the protection and vindication of them and of their possessions?

And this he makes clear through what he says next:

'Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves,' and again:

'But I say to you, do not resist the evil one;'

'but whoever strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also;'

'and to him who wishes to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak also;'

'and of him who takes what is yours, do not demand it back.'

He who has legislated for us that we turn also the other cheek to him who strikes us on the right, and that we leave also our cloak to him who wishes to sue us and take our tunic, and that we not demand back from him who takes what is ours — how could he possibly have commanded the one who is to shepherd his sheep to seek vindication at all in any earthly matter, or to touch at all upon worldly care, or to cast the sheep into such concerns and undertakings, from which the shepherd himself was first commanded to abstain?

And this the apostles confirmed by their own deeds after the Lord's ascension into heaven.

For not only did they take no thought at all for their own needs or those of the disciples under them, but they did not even consent to administer themselves the very monies offered by those who believed in our Lord Jesus Christ and laid before their feet, nor to take charge of providing the brethren's food and clothing.

'It is not right that we should leave the word of God and serve tables.'

'But let us appoint capable men for this task, while we devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.'

Since, then, it has been demonstrated that we have been commanded to be concerned about no earthly matter at all, not even about our own necessary need, nor to seek vindication either for ourselves or for our brethren when wronged and mistreated by anyone, come, then, let us examine what is meant by what was said by the Lord to the chief of the apostles:

I know that from what has been said this has already become clear, and that many of the discerning have perhaps already grasped the meaning of the saying; but for the sake of those who do not know it, we too must say a few words to your charity.

To shepherd, then, is nothing other than the care of those being shepherded through the word and through teaching;

and this Christ himself showed by speaking thus to Peter:

How many times did Satan ask to sift you like wheat?

'And I prayed for you, that your faith should not fail.'

Then he added, saying this to him as well:

What, then, does it mean, 'Strengthen your brothers'?

From the example set in your case, he says, give them full assurance that they should never be overturned into despair, whatever sin may happen to befall them.

For what, he says, is worse than denying me, the Master of all things?

But when you repented and wept bitterly, I immediately deemed you worthy of my compassion; and though you had no boldness before me, I called you, together with the rest of the disciples, on the mountain, and I did not reproach you, alone, with even a single word for this.

You shall shepherd them, not by leading them in and out from pasture to pasture and keeping their bodies well-fed and fat, nor by enclosing them with hedges and walls, but by teaching them to keep all that I have commanded you — not keeping some things and despising others, but guarding all that I have commanded you.

For, he says, 'Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.'

The shepherd of irrational sheep gives no thought to farming, to business, to a household, to abundant tables, to glory, or to honor;

he tolerates none of these things at all; rather, leaving behind house, wife, and children, he shows his whole earnestness toward his own flock, keeping watch over it and setting out on long journeys, having no bed, carrying no bedding, but enduring in the open air, bearing the heat of the day and withstanding the frost of the night, he spends the whole night through, forever wrestling with winds and cold and weather, and he never withdraws from watching over and caring for them.

But it is possible for you, whether in your house, on the road, in bed or on a couch, or even while reclining at the table itself, to shepherd my sheep;

teaching them to keep their faith in me unclouded, sincere, and unwavering, to love me with their whole soul and with their whole mind, even as I have loved them.

For on their behalf I laid down my soul and died.

Set before them, in place of irrational pasture, the life-giving food of my commandments;

teach them that partaking of it comes through the working and fulfilling of these things;

admonish and exhort them to be filled with it in this way at every hour, so that they may always be satisfied and filled full with my good things.

And as to what my good things are, and by what deeds they are acquired, you shall instruct them, telling them these things:

'Sell your possessions and give alms;'

'make for yourselves purses that do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in the heavens,'

'Love your enemies;'

'pray for those who mistreat you.'

'Do good to those who hate you.'

'Let none of you repay anyone evil for evil.'

'For if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father who is in heaven forgive you your trespasses.'

'Despise the glory below, that you may enjoy the glory that is in the heavens.'

Since, then, two things lie before us — I mean life and death — and two worlds, the visible and dissoluble, and the invisible, eternal, and indestructible, the present age and the age to come, and two agents at work upon them, set in opposition to one another — I mean God, and the devil who is opposed to him — the one striving to save us and calling us to life and the eternal kingdom, the other desiring our destruction and death, roaring each day and seeking whom he may devour through the enjoyment of these temporal things, thereby rendering him liable to eternal punishment — we must flee the wicked enemy and adversary, and take refuge with the Master who saves, and call upon the help that comes from him, lest we be mastered by the ruler of darkness and fall under his snares, becoming slaves to him and to sin.

And that the devil is the ruler of the world and of the eternal darkness, hear Christ himself saying:

'Behold, the ruler of this world is coming, and he will find nothing in me.'

He is called 'ruler,' not as one who has authority over the world or is its master — far be such blasphemy! for he does not even have authority over swine — but because, through desire for the money and things that are in the world, he enslaves and lords it over those who are nailed fast to it.

He is called 'ruler of darkness' because from the beginning he himself fell from the light through pride, and will forever be the heir of darkness.

But our God and Master, being the Creator and Maker of all things, rules by nature and by authority over all things in heaven, on earth, and beneath the earth, being light without evening and unapproachable, Lord of all, both of things present and things to come.

But as many as do the things contrary to his commandments are found ranged with the adversary, becoming outright enemies of God, even as the Savior himself says:

'He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters.'

Let no one, therefore, beloved, be added to the ruler of darkness, the world-ruler;

let no one take up arms with the devil and his angels against our Savior and God;

let no one act against his own soul, nor strive to inherit the eternal fire;

It is a fearful thing even merely to hear that we should become enemies of God.

But how it is possible to wage war against Christ, and for someone to strive for his own destruction, I shall now explain.

If someone insults you, whether justly or unjustly, or slanders or reviles you, and you do not bear the dishonor with gentleness — or, being grieved and stung at heart, you do not endure it and bridle the movements of your soul, but either insult back the one who insulted you, or revile him, or do something else against him in return; or again, though you do none of these things to him, you go away holding resentment against him in your heart, and do not forgive him from your whole soul, nor pray for him from your heart — behold, you have taken up arms against Christ, acting contrary to his commands and becoming his enemy, and you have destroyed your own soul as well, sealing and ratifying the sins you had already committed and rendering them ineradicable.

Again, if someone strikes you on the right cheek, and then you do not turn to him the other also, but instead strike him back, you have become a soldier and servant of the adversary Satan, and you have struck not only your brother, but also, through him, the One who said not to strike back, but rather to offer him the other cheek as well.

But if someone takes gold or something else from you, secretly or openly, having perhaps borrowed it or seized it, and then is unwilling to give it back to you, whether acting wickedly or being in want, and you do not bear it thankfully and without remembering the wrong, but drag the one who took it into the courts, hiring advocates and seeking help from men, and stand before the tribunal, vexed, grieved, leading and dragging your brother along, resorting to oaths and perjuries and making him swear and forswear himself and lie — which is worse than all else — and besides this hand him over to prisons, and do and contrive everything so as to recover what is owed you, how are you not manifestly an enemy of your very own self?

For you, who are commanded to visit those in prison and to minister to them as far as you are able, not to demand back what is yours from him who takes it, and to let the one who wishes to sue you and take your tunic have your cloak as well besides — and not only that, but even to lay down your own soul unto death for the commandment of God — when instead, for the sake of money that is being lost, you go to law, transgressing the ordinance of God, being grieved, vexed, and casting your brother into prisons, are you not plainly out of your mind, provoking God to anger, warring against him, and depriving yourself of eternal life?

How, then, can one who wishes to shepherd the flock of Christ and feed his sheep through the teaching of what has been said, so as to make them well-fed in righteousness and abundantly fruitful, at the same time also take thought for fields and concern himself with the care of possessions, contending for them and driving off those who wish to wrong and injure them, sometimes going before judges, sometimes resisting with contradictions and falsehood, and at times even becoming the cause of oaths and perjuries?

For it is necessary, even if he himself speaks the truth, that his adversaries at law should lie and swear and manifestly perjure themselves.

'But I say to you, do not swear at all; but let your word be, "Yes, yes," and "No, no";'

'for whatever is more than these is from the evil one.' And again:

'Truly, truly I say to you, that for every idle word which men speak, they shall give account of it in the day of judgment.'

Do not, then — since indeed we, though being but men, exhort you to be persuaded by the truth of Christ and by these words — run after the patronage of rulers and of others for the sake of human glory, luxury, and bodily enjoyment, without fearing the judgment of God and that dreadful sentence which God pronounced through the prophet Joel against those who unworthily shepherd his sheep:

'O shepherds of Israel, do the shepherds feed themselves?'

'The weak you did not strengthen, and the sick you did not heal, and the broken you did not bind up, and the ailing you did not restore, and the straying you did not bring back, and the lost you did not seek out; but the strong you wore out with labor, and with force and with harsh dealing you disciplined them, and my sheep were scattered because there were no shepherds.'

'Behold, I am against the shepherds, and I will require my sheep at their hand, and I will cause them to cease from feeding my sheep.'

'And if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, and the sword comes and takes a soul from among them, that soul was taken because of its own sin, but I will require its blood at the watchman's hand.'

These things, brothers, are fearful and full of all dread.

For this reason, let us rather be eager first to shepherd ourselves well, as Christ's flock, as a royal priesthood, and to subject the flesh to the spirit, lest the better part in us be overcome by the worse.

And when we have entered into the depth of humility and washed away the stains of sin with the streams of its tears, and have acquired a gentle and tranquil spirit from a contrite mind, and, with great thirst for the righteousness of God, have been satisfied with the ineffable good things of his kingdom through the consolation of the Spirit; then, having from this received a heart of compassion and sympathy, let us acquire a pure heart in perfect dispassion and behold the light of God — that is, the Holy Spirit itself working and speaking within us the hidden mysteries of the kingdom of God — joining together into one mind, through profound peace, the things that were divided within us; and let us first make peace with our own selves, and render ourselves, through soul and body, an instrument in harmony within the one Spirit unto God; and not only this, but also when, in many temptations, in many afflictions and calamities, we endure for Christ's sake, and bear up when persecuted and blasphemed, exhorting those who curse us and blessing them, imputing evil to no one in any way whatsoever, but bear all things, endure all things, keeping our proven character unshaken upon the foundation of the virtues — and thus, through all these things and in all that has been said, when we have grown up to the stature that is according to Christ and have run forward to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, in perfect knowledge of God and in the wisdom of the words and mysteries granted by the all-holy Spirit — then let us also give ourselves up, for the benefit of others, as the least of slaves, if indeed we are also called from above, according to the voice of the Lord:

'Whoever wishes to be first among you, let him be slave of all and servant of all.'

repenting daily and being purified by godly tears, so that we may be able to know God, and know that he is truthful in the things he has promised to give to those who love him and do his divine commands;

who will also render to each one his reward according to his works, when he delivers up the kingdom, all things having been subjected to him, to God and the Father, to whom belongs all glory, honor, and worship, now and always, and unto the unending ages of ages.

DISCOURSE 12. On the saying of the Apostle:

'Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.'

Nothing else, of all things, is so profitable to a soul that chooses to meditate on the law of God night and day, as the searching of the divine Scriptures.

For the meaning of the Spirit's grace, being hidden within them, fills the soul's intellectual perception with every delight, and, lifting it wholly up from earthly things and from the lowliness of visible things, renders it angel-like and a companion in dwelling with the angels themselves.

But let us see what the divine Apostle speaks to us each day, and let us examine with understanding some of his God-inspired sayings, so that we may grow rich with the wealth stored up in them, and may there delight in the grace of the Spirit unto the soul's unfailing gladness and enjoyment.

What, then, is it that we are examining?

It is what Paul exhorts, saying:

'Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.'

But let us, by considering matters of daily life, come to a good understanding of this as well.

For just as every merchant, craftsman, and farmer — indeed, every other person as well who practices whatever trade he happens to have — needs the utmost eagerness and much diligence for his work, so that, if he neglects it for even a short time or a brief hour, he suffers great loss, so too it happens in the case of spiritual contests, works, and deeds.

But let us first speak in more detail, as an example, to your charity, about one of these who engage in trade.