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to refute this again, not that we may deprive them of an excuse, but that we may persuade them to put away the excuse that is no excuse and does not profit, but to practice continually through works the one that is an excuse and is able to stand before the judgment seat of Christ. What then is the cold and useless excuse of the many? I am occupied with raising children, he says, I preside over a household, I support a wife, I have many necessary expenses; therefore I cannot afford to have mercy on those who come to me. What do you say? You are raising children, and for this reason you do not have mercy on those who come to you? For these very reasons then you ought to have mercy on the needy, for the sake of your children, and their protection, so that from a little money you may make God, who gave it, merciful, so that you may leave Him as a protector for them even after your death, so that you may draw down much good will upon them from above by spending of their money for God. Do you not see, that many people have often brought into their own wills men who are rich and in positions of power, who are in no way related to them, and made them co-heirs with their own children, for no other reason, than that they might acquire security for their own children with a little money? and this, not knowing how those who have become partners in the inheritance will be disposed towards their own children after their own death? But you, knowing the love for mankind and kindness and goodness of your Lord, 51.290 will you not make Him a partner of your will? will you not make Him a co-heir of your children? And how is this the act of a father, tell me, who loves his children? For if you care for the children you have borne, leave them a written bond, in which you hold God responsible. This is the greatest inheritance, this is an adornment, this is security. Bring Him into the inheritance here, so that He may in turn bring you with your children into the inheritance there. This heir is noble, loving mankind, kind, powerful, rich; so that there is no reason to be suspicious of His partnership. For this reason almsgiving is also called seed, since the matter is not an expense, but an income. But you, when you must sow, do not pay attention to the fact that you are emptying the storehouses of old harvests, but you look to the harvest of crops that is not yet present; and this, not knowing that it will certainly come to pass. For indeed both blight, and hail, and locust, and irregularity of the weather, and many things oppose our future hope; but when you are about to sow in heaven, where all irregularity of the weather has been cast out, and every cause of grief and treachery has been removed, do you hesitate and shrink back? And what excuse will you find, when in casting into the earth you are confident, and do this with eagerness, but when about to cast into the hand of God, you hesitate and are neglectful? For if the earth gives back what was cast into it, much more will the hand of God, whatever it receives, give back to you with all abundance. 10. Knowing these things, therefore, let us not pay attention to the expense, when we give alms, but to the income and to the future hopes, and to the present gain as well; for almsgiving brings about not only the kingdom of heaven, but also security and abundance in the present life. Who says these things? He Himself who is Lord to give these things. For he who has given his possessions to the poor, He says, shall receive a hundredfold in this age, and shall inherit eternal life. Do you see the rewards being given in each life with much abundance? Let us not therefore hesitate, nor put it off, but each day let us bear the fruit of almsgiving, so that our present affairs may go smoothly, and we may obtain the life to come; of which may it be granted to all of us to partake, by the grace and love for mankind of our Lord Jesus Christ, with whom to the Father, together with the Holy Spirit, be glory, honor, dominion unto ages of ages. Amen.

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τοῦτον διεξελέγξαι πάλιν, οὐχ ἵνα ἀπολογίας αὐτοὺς ἀποστερήσωμεν, ἀλλ' ἵνα πείσωμεν τὴν οὐκ οὖσαν, οὐδὲ ὠφελοῦσαν ἀπολογίαν ἀποθέσθαι, τὴν δὲ οὖσαν καὶ προστῆναι δυναμένην ἐπὶ τοῦ βήματος τοῦ Χριστοῦ, ταύτην διὰ τῶν ἔργων μελετᾷν διηνεκῶς. Τίς οὖν ἐστιν ἡ ψυχρὰ καὶ ἀνόνητος τῶν πολλῶν ἀπολογία; Παιδοτροφίᾳ συζῶ, φησὶν, οἰκίας προΐσταμαι, γυναῖκα τρέφω, πολλὰς ἔχω δαπάνης ἀνάγκας· ὅθεν οὐκ εὐπορῶ τοὺς προσιόντας μοι ἐλεεῖν. Τί λέγεις; Παιδία τρέφεις, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο τοὺς προσιόντας οὐκ ἐλεεῖς; ∆ι' αὐτὰ μὲν οὖν ταῦτα τοὺς δεομένους ἐλεεῖν δεῖ, διὰ τὰ παιδία, καὶ τὴν αὐτῶν προστασίαν, ἵνα ἀπὸ ὀλίγων χρημάτων ἵλεω τὸν δόντα αὐτὰ Θεὸν ποιήσῃς, ἵνα καταλίπῃς αὐτοῖς προστάτην ἐκεῖνον καὶ μετὰ τὸν σὸν θάνατον, ἵνα πολλὴν αὐτοῖς ἄνωθεν εὔνοιαν ἐπισπάσῃ ἀπὸ τῶν ἐκείνων χρημάτων τῷ Θεῷ δαπανῶν. Οὐχ ὁρᾷς, ὅτι πολλοὶ ἀνθρώπους πλουτοῦντας καὶ ἐν δυναστείαις ὄντας, οὐδαμόθεν αὐτοῖς προσήκοντας, εἰς τὰς διαθήκας πολλάκις εἰσήγαγον τὰς ἑαυτῶν, καὶ τοῖς ἑαυτῶν παισὶ συγκληρονόμους ἐποίησαν, δι' ἄλλο μὲν οὐδὲν, ἵνα δὲ ἀσφάλειαν τοῖς ἑαυτῶν κτήσωνται παισὶν ἀπὸ ὀλίγων χρημάτων; καὶ ταῦτα, οὐκ εἰδότες πῶς διακείσονται μετὰ τὴν αὐτῶν τελευτὴν περὶ τοὺς αὐτῶν παῖδας οἱ τοῦ κλήρου γενόμενοι κοινωνοί; Σὺ δὲ εἰδὼς τὸ φιλάνθρωπον καὶ χρηστὸν καὶ ἐπιεικὲς τοῦ σοῦ ∆εσπό 51.290 του, οὐ ποιήσεις αὐτὸν κοινωνὸν τῆς διαθήκης τῆς σῆς; οὐ ποιήσεις αὐτὸν συγκληρονόμον τῶν παίδων τῶν σῶν; καὶ ποῦ ταῦτα πατρὸς, εἰπέ μοι, παῖδας φιλοῦντος; Εἰ γὰρ κήδῃ τῶν τεχθέντων παίδων, κατάλειπε γραμματεῖον αὐτοῖς, ἐν ᾧ τὸν Θεὸν ἔχεις ὑπεύθυνον. Τοῦτο μεγίστη κληρονομία, τοῦτο κόσμος, τοῦτο ἀσφάλεια. Εἰσάγαγε αὐτὸν εἰς τὴν κληρονομίαν τὴν ἐνταῦθα, ἵνα σε μετὰ τῶν παίδων εἰς τὴν κληρονομίαν ἀντεισαγάγῃ τὴν ἐκεῖ. Οὗτος ὁ κληρονόμος γενναῖος, φιλάνθρωπος, χρηστὸς, δυνατὸς, πλούσιος· ὥστε κατ' οὐδὲν ἔστιν ὑποπτεῦσαι τὴν κοινωνίαν αὐτοῦ. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ σπόρος ἡ ἐλεημοσύνη καλεῖται, ἐπειδὴ οὐκ ἔστι δαπάνη τὸ πρᾶγμα, ἀλλὰ πρόσοδος· σὺ δὲ, ὅταν μὲν σπείρειν δέῃ, οὐ προσέχεις, ὅτι κενοῖς τὰ ταμιεῖα τῶν παλαιῶν γεννημάτων, ἀλλὰ προσέχεις τῷ μηδέπω παρόντι τῶν γεννημάτων ἀμητῷ· καὶ ταῦτα, οὐκ εἰδὼς, ὅτι πάντως ἐκβήσεται. Καὶ γὰρ καὶ ἐρυσίβη, καὶ χάλαζα, καὶ ἀκρὶς, καὶ ἀέρων ἀνωμαλία, καὶ πολλὰ τῆς ἐλπίδος ἡμᾶς ἀντικρούει τῆς μελλούσης· εἰς δὲ τὸν οὐρανὸν μέλλων σπείρειν, ὅπου πᾶσα μὲν ἀνωμαλία ἀέρων ἐκβέβληται, πάσης δὲ λύπης καὶ ἐπιβουλῆς ἀνῄρηται πρόφασις, ὀκνεῖς καὶ ἀναδύῃ; Καὶ ποίαν εὑρήσεις συγγνώμην, ὅταν εἰς μὲν τὴν γῆν καταβάλλων θαῤῥῇς, καὶ μετὰ προθυμίας τοῦτο ποιῇς, εἰς δὲ τὴν χεῖρα τοῦ Θεοῦ μέλλων καταβάλλειν, ὀκνεῖς καὶ ἀμελεῖς; Εἰ γὰρ ἡ γῆ τὰ καταβληθέντα ἀποδίδωσι, πολλῷ μᾶλλον ἡ τοῦ Θεοῦ χεὶρ, ἅπερ ἂν δέξηται, μετὰ πάσης ἀποδώσει σοι τῆς περιουσίας. ιʹ. Ταῦτ' οὖν εἰδότες, μὴ τῇ δαπάνῃ προσέχωμεν, ὅταν ἐλεημοσύνην ποιῶμεν, ἀλλὰ τῇ προσόδῳ καὶ ταῖς μελλούσαις ἐλπίσι, καὶ τῷ παρόντι δὲ κέρδει· οὐ γὰρ βασιλείαν οὐρανῶν ἐλεημοσύνη προξενεῖ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν κατὰ τὸν παρόντα βίον ἀσφάλειάν τε καὶ ἀφθονίαν. Τίς ταῦτά φησιν; Αὐτὸς ὁ ταῦτα δοῦναι κύριος. Ὁ γὰρ τὰ αὐτοῦ πένησι, φησὶ, δοὺς, ἑκατονταπλασίονα λήψεται ἐν τῷ αἰῶνι τούτῳ, καὶ ζωὴν αἰώνιον κληρονομήσει. Ὁρᾷς ἐν ἑκατέρᾳ τῇ ζωῇ τὰς ἀμοιβὰς διδομένας μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς περιουσίας; Μὴ τοίνυν ὀκνῶμεν, μηδὲ ἀναβαλλώμεθα, ἀλλὰ καθ' ἑκάστην ἡμέραν τὸν τῆς ἐλεημοσύνης καρπὸν φέρωμεν, ἵνα καὶ τὰ παρόντα ἡμῖν πράγματα κατὰ ῥοῦν φέρηται, καὶ τῆς μελλούσης ἐπιτύχωμεν ζωῆς· ἧς γένοιτο πάντας ἡμᾶς μετασχεῖν, χάριτι καὶ φιλανθρωπίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, μεθ' οὗ τῷ Πατρὶ, ἅμα τῷ ἁγίῳ Πνεύματι, δόξα, τιμὴ, κράτος εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν.