John Chrysostom, On "Do not fear"

He who wishes to be rich, has need of possessions and money; but he who does not wish to be rich, is always in abundance. Do not be afraid, when a man becomes rich, or when the glory of his house is increased. Do not be afraid, tell me, why? For since the rich are fearsome, the prophet proclaims life, Why do you fear a man boasting in leaves, but deprived of fruit? why do you fear a man walking into bitterness? why do you fear a man always trembling? why do you fear a man living with perpetual fear? For your slave does not fear you when you are absent; but that one carries his master within. Wherever he goes, the love of money follows; and neighbors, and servants, and friends, and the envious, and benefactors, he has them all as enemies. For he stirs up great envy. For the poor man lives fearing no one, since he is rich only in philosophy and endurance; but the rich man, since he lives with greed, is hated by all, and in public gatherings goes about as an enemy, flattered to his face, but hated in thought. And that these things are so, when the wind comes and casts down the leaves, when a change of circumstances occurs, then the feigned friends are discovered, then the masks of the flatterers are recognized, then the chorus of the hypocrites is revealed, and the pretense of the drama. The mouths of all are opened, saying; The defiled, the wicked, the utterly wicked. What are you saying? Did you not flatter him yesterday? Did you not kiss his hands? That was a mask. The time came, and I removed the mask, and I declared my mind. Why then do you fear, tell me, the one accused by so many? And what of this? If only he did not accuse himself. These things I say not slandering wealth, I have said it a myriad times, but those who use the good thing badly. For riches with actions are good. But how are they good? If they comfort poverty, if they relieve destitution. Hear how Job says; I was an eye to the blind, and a foot to the lame; I was a father to the powerless. Behold wealth, and there was no sin, but love for the poor. My house was opened to everyone who came. This is the ministry of wealth, of wealth not in name, but in deed. This wealth is a slave of that wealth; for this one is a name void of deeds, but that one has the truth of name and deed. Which one? That of virtues, that of almsgiving. How? I say. There is a rich man who seizes the things of all, and there is a rich man who gives his own things to the poor. The one being rich in gathering, the other in spending; and the one sows the earth, 55.504 the other cultivates heaven. As much as heaven is better than earth, so much weaker is the abundance of this one than that one's. This one has countless lovers, but that one has all as accusers. And the wondrous thing is this, that in the case of the rapacious and greedy man, not only the wronged, but also those who have suffered no evil hate him, sympathizing with those who have been treated badly; but in the case of the merciful man, not only those who have received mercy, but also those who have not received mercy love him. For virtue is better than vice, brothers. Vice has as enemies even those who have not been wronged; but almsgiving possesses as lovers even those who have not been benefited. For all say: May God do well by him[e]! For how were you benefited? Not I, but my brother; not I, but my member. For I consider the good deed done to him as done to myself. Have you seen how great virtue is? how desirable? how lovely? how good? The merciful man is the common harbor, the father of all, the staff of the aged. And in the case of the merciful man, if he suffers anything unpleasant, all pray; May God have mercy on him, do well by him, may his good things remain with him! but if you come to the rapacious man, you will hear them saying; The defiled, the wicked, the profane. How have you been wronged? I, not at all, but my brother. Countless cries every day. If he falls, all

βουλόμενος πλουτεῖν, χρείαν ἔχει κτημάτων καὶ χρημάτων· ὁ δὲ μὴ βουλόμενος πλουτεῖν, ἀεί ἐστιν ἐν εὐπορίᾳ. Μὴ φοβοῦ, ὅταν πλουτήσῃ ἄνθρωπος, ἢ ὅταν πληθυνθῇ ἡ δόξα τοῦ οἴκου αὐτοῦ. Μὴ φοβοῦ, εἰπέ μοι, διὰ τί; Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ φοβεροί εἰσιν οἱ πλουτοῦντες, ἐκλαλεῖ τὴν ζωὴν ὁ προφήτης, Τί δέδοικας ἄνθρωπον φύλλοις κομῶντα, καρποῦ δὲ ἀπεστερημένον; τί δέδοικας ἄνθρωπον εἰς πικρίαν βαδίζοντα; τί δέδοικας ἄνθρωπον ἀεὶ τρέμοντα; τί δέδοικας ἄνθρωπον διηνεκεῖ φόβῳ συζῶντα; Ὁ μὲν γὰρ δοῦλός σου οὐ δέδοικέ σε ἀπόντα· ἐκεῖνος δὲ τὸν δεσπότην ἔνδοθεν περιφέρει. Ὅπου ἐὰν ἀπέλθῃ, ὁ ἔρως τῆς φιλοχρηματίας ἕπεται· καὶ πλησίους, καὶ οἰκέτας, καὶ φίλους, καὶ βασκάνους, καὶ εὐεργέτας, ἅπαντας ὁμοῦ ἐχθροὺς ἔχει. Φθόνον γὰρ ἐγείρει μέγαν. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ πένης οὐδένα δεδοικὼς διάγει, ἐπειδὴ πλουτεῖ μόνον τῇ φιλοσοφίᾳ καὶ ὑπομονῇ· ὁ δὲ πλούσιος, ἐπειδὴ πλεονεξίᾳ συζῇ, μισεῖται παρὰ πάντων, καὶ ἐν κοινοῖς συλλόγοις πολέμιος περιέρχεται, κολακευόμενος μὲν τῷ προσώπῳ, μισούμενος δὲ τῇ διανοίᾳ. Ὅτι δὲ ταῦτα τοῦτον ἔχει τὸν τρόπον, ὅταν ἔλθῃ ὁ ἄνεμος, καὶ ῥίψῃ τὰ φύλλα, ὅταν μεταβολὴ τῶν πραγμάτων γένηται, τότε εὑρίσκονται οἱ πεπλασμένοι φίλοι, τότε γνωρίζεται τὰ προσωπεῖα τῶν κολάκων, τότε φανεροῦται ὁ χορὸς τῶν ὑποκριτῶν, καὶ ἡ σκῆψις τοῦ δράματος. Ἀνοίγεται τὰ στόματα πάντων λεγόντων· Ὁ μιαρὸς, ὁ πονηρὸς, ὁ παμπόνηρος. Τί λέγεις; οὐχὶ χθὲς αὐτὸν ἐκολάκευες; οὐχὶ τὰς χεῖρας αὐτοῦ κατεφίλεις; Προσωπεῖον ἦν ἐκεῖνα. Ἦλθεν ὁ καιρὸς, καὶ περιεῖλον τὸ προσωπεῖον, καὶ ἀπεφηνάμην τῇ διανοίᾳ. Τί οὖν δέδοικας, εἰπέ μοι, τὸν ὑπὸ τοσούτων κατηγορούμενον; Καὶ τί τοῦτο; Εἴθε μὴ αὐτὸς ἑαυτοῦ κατηγόρει. Ταῦτα λέγω οὐ πλοῦτον διαβάλλων, μυριάκις εἶπον, ἀλλὰ τοὺς κακῶς τῷ καλῷ κεχρημένους πράγματι. Τὰ γὰρ χρήματα σὺν ταῖς πράξεσι καλά. Πῶς καλὰ δέ; Ἐὰν παραμυθῶνται τὴν πενίαν, ἐὰν διορθῶνται πτωχείαν. Ἄκουσον πῶς λέγει ὁ Ἰώβ· Ἐγὼ ἤμηνὀφθαλμὸς τυφλῶν, ποὺς δὲ χωλῶν· ἐγὼ ἤμην πατὴρ ἀδυνάτων. Ἰδοὺ πλοῦτος, καὶ ἁμαρτία οὐκ ἦν, ἀλλὰ φιλοπτωχεία. Ἡ οἰκία μου παντὶ ἐλθόντι ἀνέῳκτο. Τοῦτο πλούτου διακονία, πλούτου οὐκ ὀνόματι, ἀλλὰ πράγματι. Οὗτος ὁ πλοῦτος δοῦλος ἐκείνου τοῦ πλούτου· οὗτος μὲν γὰρ ὄνομά ἐστιν ἔρημον πραγμάτων, ἐκεῖνος δὲ ὀνόματος καὶ πράγματος ἔχει τὴν ἀλήθειαν. Ποῖος; Ὁ τῶν ἀρετῶν, ὁ τῆς ἐλεημοσύνης. Πῶς; Ἐγὼ λέγω. Ἔστι πλούσιος τὰ πάντων ἁρπάζων, καὶ ἔστι πλούσιος τὰ ἑαυτοῦ τοῖς πένησι παρέχων. Ὁ μὲν ἐν τῷ συνάγειν, ὁ δὲ ἐν τῷ ἀναλίσκειν πλουτῶν· καὶ ὁ μὲν σπείρει τὴν γῆν, 55.504 ὁ δὲ γεωργεῖ τὸν οὐρανόν. Ὅσον ὁ οὐρανὸς τῆς γῆς βελτίων, τοσοῦτον ἐκείνου ἡ εὐπορία τούτου ἀσθενεστέρα. Οὗτος μυρίους ἔχει τοὺς ἐραστὰς, ἐκεῖνος δὲ πάντας κατηγόρους. Καὶ τὸ δὴ θαυμαστὸν, ἐπὶ μὲν τοῦ ἅρπαγος καὶ πλεονέκτου, οὐ μόνον οἱ ἠδικημένοι, ἀλλὰ καὶ οἱ μηδὲν παθόντες κακὸν μισοῦσιν ἐκεῖνον, συναλγοῦντες τοῖς κακῶς πεπονθόσιν· ἐπὶ δὲ τοῦ ἐλεήμονος, οὐ μόνον οἱ ἐλεηθέντες, ἀλλὰ καὶ οἱ μὴ ἐλεηθέντες φιλοῦσιν αὐτόν. Βέλτιον γὰρ ἡ ἀρετὴ τῆς κακίας, ἀδελφοί. Ἡ κακία καὶ τοὺς μὴ ἀδικηθέντας πολεμίους ἔχει· ἡ δὲ ἐλεημοσύνη καὶ τοὺς μὴ εὐεργετηθέντας ἐραστὰς κέκτηται. Λέγουσι γὰρ πάντες· Καλῶς αὐτῷ ὁ Θεὸς ποιήσει[ε]! Τί γὰρ εὐηργετήθης; Οὐκ ἐγὼ, ἀλλ' ὁ ἀδελφὸς ὁ ἐμός· οὐκ ἐγὼ, ἀλλὰ τὸ μέλος τὸ ἐμόν. Τὴν γὰρ εἰς ἐκεῖνον γενομένην εὐποιίαν εἰς ἐμαυτὸν λογίζομαι. Εἶδες ἡλίκον ἡ ἀρετή; πῶς ποθεινόν; πῶς ἐπέραστον; πῶς καλόν; Ὁ ἐλεήμων ὁ κοινὸς λιμὴν, ὁ πατὴρ πάντων, ἡ βακτηρία τῶν γεγηρακότων. Καὶ ἐπὶ μὲν τοῦ ἐλεήμονος, ἐάν τι ἀηδὲς πάθῃ, εὔχονται πάντες· Ὁ Θεὸς αὐτὸν ἐλεήσαι, ποιήσαι αὐτῷ καλῶς, παραμείναι αὐτῷ τὰ ἀγαθά! ἐὰν δὲ ἔλθῃς ἐπὶ τὸν ἅρπαγα, ἀκούσῃ λεγόντων· Ὁ μιαρὸς, ὁ πονηρὸς, ὁ βέβηλος. Τί ἠδίκησαι; Ἐγὼ μὲν οὐδὲν, ἀλλ' ὁ ἀδελφὸς ὁ ἐμός. Βοαὶ μυρίαι καθ' ἑκάστην ἡμέραν. Ἐὰν πέσῃ, πάντες