John Chrysostom, On Priesthood

if a man should stray from the faith, the shepherd needs great effort, endurance, and patience; for it is not possible to drag him by force, nor to compel him by fear, but one must by persuasion lead him back again to the truth from which he originally fell away. Therefore, a noble soul is needed, so that he may not grow weary, so that he may not despair of the salvation of those who are wandering, so that he may constantly consider and say that; “Perhaps God may grant them a knowledge of the truth and they may return to soberness from the snare of the devil.” For these reasons the Lord, speaking to his disciples, said: “Who then is the faithful and wise servant?” For he who disciplines himself confines the benefit to himself alone; but the gain of the pastoral office extends to all the people. And he who distributes money to the needy or otherwise defends the wronged has indeed benefited his neighbors, but less so than the priest by as much as the difference between body and soul. Rightly, therefore, did the Lord say that zeal for the flocks is a sign of love for him.

2.5 εʹ. That it was for the sake of love for Christ that we fled from the matter. {BASIL} But you, he says, do you not love Christ? {JOHN} I both love him and will never cease loving him; but I fear that I may provoke him whom I love. {BASIL} And what riddle could be more obscure than this, he says, if Christ commanded the one who loves him to feed his sheep, but you say that you do not feed them for this reason, because you love him who commanded this? {JOHN} It is not a riddle, I said, the statement, but both very clear and simple. For if, being competent to manage this office as Christ wished, I then fled from it, one would have to be perplexed at what I say; but since the weakness of my soul renders me useless for this ministry, where is what I say worthy of question? For I am afraid that, having received the flock of Christ vigorous and well-fed, I might then through carelessness ruin it, and provoke against myself the God who so loved it as to give himself for its salvation and honor. {BASIL} You are saying these things in jest, he says; for if you were serious, I do not know how else you could have better shown us to be justly grieved than by these words through which you have striven to ward off our despondency. For I, knowing before that you deceived and betrayed me, now much more, when you have tried to divest yourself of the charges, learn and understand well into what evils you have led me. For if for this reason you withdrew yourself from such a ministry, because you perceived your soul was not adequate for the magnitude of the matter, you ought to have rescued me first, even if I happened to have much desire for it, not to mention that I entrusted all counsel concerning these things to you. But now, looking only to your own interest, you have overlooked mine; would that you had only overlooked it, that would have been tolerable, but you also plotted how we might become an easy prey to those wishing to take us. For you could not take refuge in this, that the opinion of the multitude deceived you and persuaded you to suspect some great and wonderful things about us; for we are neither among the admired and distinguished, nor, even if this were so, ought you to have preferred the opinion of the multitude to the truth. For if we had never given you experience of our company, you would seem to have some reasonable excuse for casting your vote based on the rumor of the multitude; but if no one knows our affairs so well, but you understand our soul better even than those who begot and raised us, what argument will be so plausible for you as to be able to persuade your hearers that you did not willingly thrust us into this danger? But let these things be put aside for now; for we do not compel you to be judged for them. What shall we say in our defense to those who accuse us? Tell me. {JOHN} But I myself will not, I said, proceed to those matters until I have settled things with you, even if you yourself are willing ten thousand times to release us from the charges. For you said

ἄνθρωπος ἀποπλανηθείη πίστεως, πολλῆς δεῖ τῷ ποιμένι τῆς πραγματείας, τῆς καρτερίας, τῆς ὑπομονῆς· οὐ γὰρ ἑλκύσαι πρὸς βίαν ἔστιν, οὐδὲ ἀναγκάσαι φόβῳ, πείσαντα δὲ δεῖ πάλιν πρὸς τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἐπαναγαγεῖν ὅθεν ἐξέπεσε τὴν ἀρχήν. Γενναίας οὖν δεῖ ψυχῆς ἵνα μὴ περικακῇ, ἵνα μὴ ἀπογινώσκῃ τὴν τῶν πλανωμένων σωτηρίαν, ἵνα συνεχῶς ἐκεῖνο καὶ λογίζηται καὶ λέγῃ· «Μήποτε δῷ αὐτοῖς ὁ Θεὸς ἐπίγνωσιν ἀληθείας καὶ ἀνανήψωσιν ἐκ τῆς τοῦ διαβόλου παγίδος.» ∆ιὰ ταῦτα τοῖς μαθηταῖς ὁ Κύριος διαλεγόμενος ἔφη· «Τίς ἄρα ὁ πιστὸς δοῦλος καὶ φρόνιμος;» Ὁ μὲν γὰρ ἑαυτὸν ἀσκῶν εἰς ἑαυτὸν μόνον περιΐστησι τὴν ὠφέλειαν· τὸ δὲ τῆς ποιμαντικῆς κέρδος εἰς ἅπαντα διαβαίνει τὸν λαόν. Καὶ ὁ μὲν χρήματα διανέμων τοῖς δεομένοις ἢ καὶ ἑτέρως πως ἀδικουμένοις ἀμύνων ὤνησε μέν τι καὶ οὗτος τοὺς πλησίον, τοσούτῳ δὲ ἔλαττον τοῦ ἱερέως ὅσῳ τὸ μέσον σώματος πρὸς ψυχήν. Εἰκότως ἄρα τῆς εἰς αὐτὸν ἀγάπης τὴν περὶ τὰ ποίμνια σπουδὴν ὁ Κύριος ἔφησεν εἶναι σημεῖον.

2.5 εʹ. Ὅτι τῆς εἰς τὸν Χριστὸν ἀγάπης ἕνεκεν τὸ πρᾶγμα ἐφύγομεν {ΒΑΣ.} Σὺ δέ, φησίν, οὐ φιλεῖς τὸν Χριστόν; {ΙΩ.} Καὶ φιλῶ καὶ φιλῶν οὐ παύσομαί ποτε· δέδοικα δὲ μὴ παροξύνω τὸν φιλούμενον ὑπ' ἐμοῦ. {ΒΑΣ.} Καὶ τί τούτου γένοιτ' ἂν αἴνιγμα, φησίν, ἀσαφέστερον, εἰ ὁ μὲν Χριστὸς τὸν φιλοῦντα αὐτὸν ποιμαίνειν προσέταξεν αὐτοῦ τὰ πρόβατα, σὺ δὲ διὰ τοῦτο φῇς οὐ ποιμαίνειν ἐπειδὴ τὸν τοῦτο προστάξαντα φιλεῖς; {ΙΩ.} Οὐκ ἔστιν αἴνιγμα, ἔφην, ὁ λόγος, ἀλλὰ καὶ λίαν σαφὴς καὶ ἁπλοῦς. Εἰ μὲν γὰρ ἱκανῶς ἔχων διοικῆσαι τὴν ἀρχὴν ταύτην καθὼς ὁ Χριστὸς ἤθελεν, εἶτα ἀπέφυγον, ἔδει πρὸς τὸ παρ' ἐμοῦ λεγόμενον ἀπορεῖν· ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἄχρηστόν με πρὸς τὴν διακονίαν ταύτην ἡ τῆς ψυχῆς ἀσθένεια καθίστησι, ποῦ ζητήσεως ἄξιον τὸ λεγόμενον; Καὶ γὰρ δέδοικα μὴ τὴν ἀγέλην τοῦ Χριστοῦ σφριγῶσαν καὶ εὐτραφῆ παραλαβών, εἶτα αὐτὴν ἐξ ἀπροσεξίας λυμηνάμενος, παροξύνω κατ' ἐμαυτοῦ τὸν οὕτως αὐτὴν ἀγαπήσαντα Θεὸν ὡς ἑαυτὸν ἐκδοῦναι διὰ τὴν ταύτης σωτηρίαν τε καὶ τιμήν. {ΒΑΣ.} Παίζων λέγεις ταῦτα, φησίν· εἰ γὰρ σπουδάζων, οὐκ οἶδα πῶς ἂν ἑτέρως μᾶλλον ἡμᾶς ἀπέδειξας δικαίως ἀλγοῦντας ἢ διὰ τῶν ῥημάτων τούτων δι' ὧν ἀποκρούσασθαι τὴν ἀθυμίαν ἐσπούδασας. Ἐγὼ γὰρ καὶ πρότερον εἰδὼς ὅτι με ἠπάτησας καὶ προὔδωκας, νῦν δὲ πολλῷ πλέον ὅτε καὶ τὰ ἐγκλήματα ἀποδύσασθαι ἐπεχείρησας, τοῦτο μανθάνω καὶ συνίημι καλῶς οἷ τῶν κακῶν με ἤγαγες. Εἰ γὰρ διὰ τοῦτο σαυτὸν ὑπεξήγαγες τῆς τοιαύτης λειτουργίας ὅτι συνεῖδες οὐκ ἀρκοῦσάν σου τὴν ψυχὴν πρὸς τὸν τοῦ πράγματος ὄγκον, ἐμὲ πρότερον ἐξελέσθαι ἐχρῆν καὶ εἰ πολλὴν πρὸς τοῦτο ἐπιθυμίαν ἔχων ἐτύγχανον, μὴ ὅτι καὶ πᾶσαν τὴν ὑπὲρ τούτων ἐπέτρεψά σοι βουλήν. Νῦν δὲ τὸ σαυτοῦ μόνον ἰδὼν τὸ ἡμέτερον παρεῖδες· εἴθε μὲν οὖν παρεῖδες, καὶ ἀγαπητὸν ἦν, σὺ δὲ καὶ ὅπως εὐχείρωτοι γενώμεθα τοῖς βουλομένοις λαβεῖν ἐπεβούλευσας. Οὐδὲ γὰρ εἰς ἐκεῖνο καταφυγεῖν ἔχοις ἂν ὅτι ἡ τῶν πολλῶν δόξα ἠπάτησέ σε καὶ μεγάλα τινὰ καὶ θαυμαστὰ περὶ ἡμῶν ὑποπτεύειν ἔπεισεν· οὔτε γὰρ τῶν θαυμαζομένων καὶ ἐπισήμων ἡμεῖς, οὔτε, εἰ καὶ τοῦτο οὕτως ἔχον ἐτύγχανε, τὴν τῶν πολλῶν δόξαν τῆς ἀληθείας προτιμῆσαι ἐχρῆν. Εἰ μὲν γὰρ μηδέποτέ σοι πεῖραν τῆς ἡμετέρας ἔδομεν συνουσίας, ἐδόκει τις εἶναί σοι πρόφασις εὔλογος ἀπὸ τῆς τῶν πολλῶν φήμης φέροντι τὴν ψῆφον· εἰ δὲ οὐδεὶς οὕτω τὰ ἡμέτερα οἶδεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν γεγεννηκότων καὶ θρεψαμένων αὐτῶν τὴν ἡμετέραν μᾶλλον ἐπίστασαι ψυχήν, τίς οὕτως ἔσται σοι λόγος πιθανὸς ὡς δυνηθῆναι πεῖσαι τοὺς ἀκούοντας ὅτι οὐχ ἑκὼν ἡμᾶς εἰς τοῦτον ὦσας τὸν κίνδυνον; Ἀλλὰ γὰρ ταῦτα ἀφείσθω νῦν· οὐδὲ γὰρ ὑπὲρ τούτων ἀναγκάζομέν σε κρίνεσθαι. Τί πρὸς τοὺς ἐγκαλοῦντας ἀπολογησόμεθα; λέγε. {ΙΩ.} Ἀλλ' οὐδὲ αὐτὸς πρότερον, ἔφην, ἐπ' ἐκεῖνα πορεύσομαι ἕως ἂν διαλύσωμαι τὰ πρὸς σέ, κἂν μυριάκις αὐτὸς ἡμᾶς τῶν ἐγκλημάτων ἐθέλῃς ἀπολύειν. Σὺ μὲν γὰρ ἔφης