John Chrysostom, On the Beginning of Acts

exchange for tranquility? For the poor not to have been present then is a terrible thing, but not so terrible as for the rich not to have been present. For what reason? Because the poor have their necessary occupation, the care of their daily work, making their living from their hands; they take care of raising children, they are in charge of a wife, and if they do not labor, their means of life will be gone. I say these things, not composing an apology for them, but showing how the rich are worthy of greater accusation. Inasmuch as they enjoy more freedom, so much more condemnation, because they are not held back by any of these things. 51.70 Do you not see the Jews, the fighters against God, those who resist the Holy Spirit, the stiff-necked? Those who did not come are worse than all of these. If the priests tell them to be idle for seven days, and ten, and twenty, and thirty, they do not speak against it; and yet what is more difficult than that idleness? They shut their doors, and they neither light a fire, nor carry water, nor are they permitted to handle anything else for such a need; but idleness is a chain to them, and even so they do not speak against it. But I say nothing of the sort, that, “Be idle for seven days,” or “ten days;” but, “Lend me two hours of the day, and keep the rest for yourself;” and not even this measure do you contribute to me. Or rather, do not lend the two hours to me, but to yourself; so that you may receive some comfort of prayer from the fathers, so that you may depart filled with blessings, so that you may go away secure on all sides, so that having taken up the spiritual weapons you may become unconquerable, unsubdued by the devil. What is sweeter, tell me, than the way of life here? For if it were necessary to spend the whole day here, what would be more venerable? What more secure, where there are so many brethren, where the Holy Spirit is, where Jesus is in the midst, and His Father? What other such assembly do you seek? What other council chamber? What synod? So many good things are at the table, in the hearing, in the blessings, in the prayers, in the gatherings; and you look to other pastimes? And what excuse do you have? I did not say these things so that you might hear; for you have no need of these medicines, you who have shown by your works your health, your obedience, who through your zeal have spread your longing; but I said these things to you, so that those who are not present might hear through you. Do not say that I simply accused those who were not present, but recount the whole discourse to them from the beginning. Remind them of the Jews, remind them of worldly matters; tell them how much better is the assembly here, tell them how much zeal they show for the things of the world, tell them how great a reward follows those who gather here. For if you only say that I accused them, you have aroused their anger, and inflicted a wound, but have not applied the medicine; but if you teach them that I did not accuse them as an enemy, but as a grieving friend, and persuade them that, “More trustworthy are the wounds of friends, than the voluntary kisses of enemies,” they will receive the accusation with much pleasure; for they will not pay attention to the words, but to the intention of the one speaking. In this way, heal your brethren. We are responsible for the salvation of you who are present, you for that of those who are absent. We can 51.71 not meet with them by ourselves; let us meet with them through you, and your teaching; let your love become a kind of bridge for us to them; cause our words to cross over to their hearing by means of your tongue. Perhaps what has been said on behalf of those who are absent has been said sufficiently, and there is no need to add more. For it was possible to say more, but lest we should spend all the time on this, making accusations, and benefiting you yourselves who are present not at all, come, let us set before you also a foreign and new dish; and I say foreign and new not in respect to the spiritual table, but foreign in respect to your hearing.

ἀντικαταλλάττῃ γαλήνης; Τὸ μὴ παραγενέσθαι πένητας τοὺς τότε παρόντας, δεινὸν μὲν, ἀλλ' οὐδὲ οὕτω δεινὸν, ὡς τὸ μὴ παραγενέσθαι πλουσίους. Τίνος ἕνεκεν; Ὅτι οἱ μὲν πένητες ἔχουσι τὴν ἀναγκαίαν ἀσχολίαν, τὴν φροντίδα τῆς καθημερινῆς ἐργασίας, ἀπὸ τῶν χειρῶν ποιούμενοι τὸν βίον· παιδοτροφίας ἐπιμελοῦνται, γυναικὸς προεστήκασι, κἂν μὴ κάμωσι, τὰ τῆς ζωῆς αὐτοῖς οἰχήσεται. Ταῦτα λέγω, οὐχὶ ἀπολογίαν ὑπὲρ ἐκείνων συντιθεὶς, ἀλλὰ δεικνὺς πῶς μείζονος κατηγορίας οἱ πλουτοῦντές εἰσιν ἄξιοι. Ὅσον πλείονος ἀπολαύουσιν ἀδείας, τοσοῦτον καὶ κατακρίσεως, ὅτι οὐδενὶ τούτων κατέχονται. 51.70 Οὐχ ὁρᾶτε τοὺς Ἰουδαίους, τοὺς θεομάχους, τοὺς ἀντιπίπτοντας τῷ ἁγίῳ Πνεύματι, τοὺς σκληροτραχήλους; Τούτων οἱ μὴ παραγενόμενοι πάντων χείρους εἰσίν. Ἐκείνοις ἐὰν εἴπωσιν οἱ ἱερεῖς ἑπτὰ ἡμέρας ἀργῆσαι, καὶ δέκα, καὶ εἴκοσι, καὶ τριάκοντα, οὐκ ἀντιλέγουσι· καίτοι τί τῆς ἀργίας ἐκείνης χαλεπώτερον; Τὰς θύρας ἀποκλείουσι, καὶ οὔτε πῦρ καίουσιν, οὐχ ὕδωρ φέρουσιν, οὐκ ἄλλο τι πρὸς τὴν χρείαν τὴν τοιαύτην μεταχειρίζειν ἐφίενται· ἀλλ' ἔστιν ἅλυσις αὐτοῖς ἡ ἀργία, καὶ οὐδὲ οὕτως ἀντιλέγουσιν. Ἐγὼ δὲ οὐδὲν τοιοῦτον λέγω, ὅτι Ἑπτὰ ἡμέρας ἄργησον, οὐδὲ δέκα ἡμέρας· ἀλλὰ δύο μοι δάνεισον ὥρας τῆς ἡμέρας, καὶ τὰς λοιπὰς αὐτὸς ἔχε· καὶ οὐδὲ τοῦτό μοι τὸ μέτρον εἰσφέρεις. Μᾶλλον δὲ μὴ ἐμοὶ δανείσῃς τὰς δύο ὥρας, ἀλλ' ἑαυτῷ· ἵνα παράκλησίν τινα εὐχῆς δέξῃ πατέρων, ἵνα εὐλογιῶν πεπληρωμένος ἀναχωρήσῃς, ἵνα πανταχόθεν ἀσφαλὴς ἀπέλθῃς, ἵνα τὰ ὅπλα λαβὼν τὰ πνευματικὰ ἀκαταγώνιστος γένῃ, ἀχείρωτος τῷ διαβόλῳ. Τί ἡδύτερον, εἰπέ μοι, τῆς ἐνταῦθα διαγωγῆς; Εἰ γὰρ διημερεύειν ἐνταῦθα ἐχρῆν, τί σεμνότερον; τί ἀσφαλέστερον, ὅπου ἀδελφοὶ τοσοῦτοι, ὅπου τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον, ὅπου Ἰησοῦς μέσος, καὶ ὁ τούτου Πατήρ; Ποίαν ἑτέραν ζητεῖς συναγωγὴν τοιαύτην; ποῖον ἕτερον βουλευτήριον; ποίαν σύνοδον; Τοσαῦτα ἀγαθὰ ἐν τῇ τραπέζῃ, ἐν τῇ ἀκροάσει, ἐν ταῖς εὐλογίαις, ἐν ταῖς εὐχαῖς, ἐν ταῖς συνουσίαις· καὶ σὺ πρὸς ἑτέρας βλέπεις διατριβάς; Καὶ ποίαν ἔχεις συγγνώμην; Ταῦτα οὐχ ἵνα ὑμεῖς ἀκούσητε εἶπον· οὐ γὰρ χρείαν ἔχετε τῶν φαρμάκων τούτων ὑμεῖς, οἱ διὰ τῶν ἔργων ἐπιδειξάμενοι τὴν ὑγίειαν, τὴν ὑπακοὴν, οἱ διὰ τῆς σπουδῆς τὸν πόθον ἁπλώσαντες· ἀλλ' εἶπον ταῦτα πρὸς ὑμᾶς, ἵνα ἀκούσωσιν οἱ μὴ παρόντες δι' ὑμῶν. Μὴ εἴπητε, ὅτι κατηγόρησα τῶν μὴ παραγενομένων ἁπλῶς, ἀλλ' ὅλον ἄνωθεν αὐτοῖς διηγήσασθε τὸν λόγον. Ἀναμνήσατε αὐτοὺς τῶν Ἰουδαίων, ἀναμνήσατε αὐτοὺς τῶν βιωτικῶν πραγμάτων· εἴπατε πόσῳ βελτίων ἡ ἐνταῦθα σύναξις, εἴπατε πόσην σπουδὴν περὶ τὰ τοῦ κόσμου πράγματα ἐπιδείκνυνται, εἴπατε πόσος μισθὸς ἕπεται τοῖς ἐνταῦθα συλλεγομένοις. Ἂν γὰρ μόνον εἴπητε, ὅτι κατηγόρησα, τὸν μὲν θυμὸν ἠγείρατε, καὶ τραῦμα εἰργάσασθε, τὸ δὲ φάρμακον οὐκ ἐπεθήκατε· ἂν δὲ διδάξητε αὐτοὺς, ὅτι οὐχ ὡς ἐχθρὸς κατηγόρησα, ἀλλ' ὡς φίλος ὀδυνώμενος, καὶ πείσητε αὐτοὺς, ὅτι Ἀξιοπιστότερα τραύματα φίλων, ἢ ἑκούσια φιλήματα ἐχθρῶν, δέξονται μετὰ πολλῆς ἡδονῆς τὴν κατηγορίαν· οὐ γὰρ τοῖς ῥήμασιν, ἀλλὰ τῇ γνώμῃ τοῦ λέγοντος προσέξουσιν. Οὕτω θεραπεύετε τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς τοὺς ὑμετέρους. Ἡμεῖς τῆς σωτηρίας ὑπεύθυνοι τῶν παρόντων ὑμῶν, ὑμεῖς τῆς τῶν ἀπολειφθέντων. Οὐ δυνά 51.71 μεθα αὐτοῖς συγγενέσθαι δι' ἑαυτῶν· συγγενώμεθα αὐτοῖς δι' ὑμῶν, καὶ τῆς ὑμετέρας διδασκαλίας· γέφυρά τις ἡμῖν γενέσθω πρὸς ἐκείνους ἡ ὑμετέρα ἀγάπη· ποιήσατε τοὺς ὑμετέρους λόγους διὰ τῆς ὑμετέρας γλώττης διαβῆναι πρὸς τὴν ἐκείνων ἀκρόασιν. Τάχα αὐτάρκως εἴρηται ἕνεκεν τῶν ἀπολειφθέντων τὰ εἰρημένα, καὶ οὐδὲν δεῖ πλέον προσθεῖναι. Ἐνῆν μὲν γὰρ πλείονα εἰπεῖν, ἀλλ' ἵνα μὴ τὸν καιρὸν ἅπαντα εἰς τοῦτο καταδαπανήσωμεν κατηγοροῦντες, ὑμᾶς δὲ μηδὲν ὠφελοῦντες παραγενομένους αὐτοὺς, φέρε τι καὶ ὑμῖν παραθῶμεν ξένον ὄψον καὶ καινόν· ξένον δὲ καὶ καινὸν λέγω οὐ κατὰ τὴν πνευματικὴν τράπεζαν, ἀλλὰ ξένον κατὰ τὴν ὑμετέραν ἀκρόασιν.