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But the unapproved part will be deemed worthy of the appropriate treatment; and from such a common exercise, through gradual addition, perfection will come to us.

QUESTION 27. That it is necessary for the superior also to be reminded by the

prominent ones in the brotherhood, if ever he should err. RESPONSE Just as the superior is responsible for guiding the brotherhood in all things, so again it also falls to the rest, if ever some offense is suspected concerning the superior, to remind him. So that good order may not be dissolved, one must entrust the reminder to those preeminent in both age and understanding. If, then, there is something worthy of correction, we have benefited both the brother and ourselves through him, who is, as it were, the rule of our life, and who ought by his own rectitude to convict what is crooked in us, having set him aright; but if some are needlessly troubled concerning him, being fully informed through the disclosure of things suspected without truth, they are freed from their judgment against him.

QUESTION 28. How must all be disposed concerning the disobedient one. RESPONSE.

For one who is sluggishly disposed toward obedience to the commandments of the Lord, first all must sympathize with him as with a diseased member, and with their own counsels the superior must try to correct his sickness; but if he persists in disobe dience and does not accept correction, he is to be rebuked more severely in the presence of the whole brotherhood, and with all exhortation the remedies are to be applied to him; but if after much admonition he is not ashamed, nor heals himself in his deeds, as one being his own destroyer, according to the proverb, with ma ny tears and lamentations, yet nevertheless as a cor rupted and utterly useless member, in imitation of physicians, he is to be cut off from the common body. For they too, whatever member they find to be afflicted with an incurable disease, lest the harm spread far, corrupting the adjacent parts in succession, are accustomed to remove it by incisions and cauterizations. This is what we too must of necessity do in the case of those who are hosti le or who hinder the commandments of the Lord, according to the command of the 31.989 Lord Himself who said: If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out, and cast it from you. For philanthropy in such cases is similar to the undisciplined kindness of Eli, for which he is rebuked for having used it on his sons contrary to what was pleasing to God. Therefore, kindness shown to the wicked is a betrayal of the truth, and a plot against the community, and a habituation to indifference to ev ils, so that what is written no longer happens: Why did you not rather mourn, so that he who has done this deed might be removed from among you? but what follows necessarily happens, that A little leaven leavens the whole lump. But those who sin, says the Apostle, rebuke in the presence of all; and he immediately adds the reason, saying: so that the rest also may have fear. In short, he who does not accept the treatment offered to him by the superior is at vari ance even with himself. For if he does not deign to be subject, and asserts his own will, what business does he have with him? Why does he even register him as the superior of his own life? But having once deigned to be enrolled in the body of the brotherhood, if he is judged to have become a serviceable vessel, even if the command seems to be beyond his strength, casting the judgment upon the one who commands beyond his strength, let him show himself compliant and obedient unto death, remem bering the Lord, that He became obedient unto death, even death on a cross. But to be rebellious, and to contradict, has the proof of many evils, a sick ness of faith, a hesitation of hope, and arrogance and pride of character. For no one is disobedient without first condemning the

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τὸ δὲ ἀδόκιμον τῆς προσηκούσης θεραπείας ἀξιωθήσεται· ἔκ τε τῆς τοιαύτης συνασκήσεως διὰ τῆς κατὰ μικρὸν προσθήκης ἡ τελείωσις ἡμῖν προσγενήσεται.

ΕΡΩΤΗΣΙΣ ΚΖʹ. Ὅτι δεῖ καὶ τὸν προεστῶτα ὑπομιμνήσκεσθαι παρὰ τῶν

προεχόντων ἐν τῇ ἀδελφότητι, εἴποτε σφαλῇ. ΑΠΟΚΡΙΣΙΣ Ὥσπερ δὲ ὁ προεστὼς ὑπεύθυνός ἐστιν ὁδηγεῖν εἰς πάντα τὴν ἀδελφότητα, οὕτω πάλιν καὶ τοῖς λοιποῖς ἐπιβάλλει, ἄν ποτε ὑποπτευθῇ τι περὶ τὸν προεστῶτα πλημμέλημα, ὑπομιμνήσκειν αὐτόν. Ὥστε δὲ μὴ λυθῆναι τὴν εὐταξίαν, τοῖς προέχουσι τήν τε ἡλικίαν καὶ τὴν σύνεσιν ἐπιτρέπειν χρὴ τὴν ὑπόμνησιν. Ἐὰν μὲν οὖν ᾖ τι διορθώσεως ἄξιον, τόν τε ἀδελφὸν ὠφελήσαμεν, καὶ ἑαυτοὺς δι' ἐκείνου, τὸν οἱονεὶ κανόνα τοῦ ἡμετέρου βίου ὄντα, καὶ τῇ ἑαυτοῦ ὀρθότητι τὸ ἐνδιάστροφον ἡμῶν δι ελέγχειν ὀφείλοντα πρὸς τὸ εὐθὺ καταρτίσαντες· ἐὰν δὲ μάτην τινὲς ἐπ' αὐτῷ ταραχθῶσι πληροφορη θέντες διὰ τῆς φανερώσεως τῶν οὐ μετ' ἀληθείας ὑποπτευθέντων, τῆς ἐπ' αὐτῷ διακρίσεως ἀπαλλάσ σονται.

ΕΡΩΤΗΣΙΣ ΚΗʹ. Πῶς χρὴ διακεῖσθαι τοὺς πάντας περὶ τὸν ἀπειθῆ. ΑΠΟΚΡΙΣΙΣ.

Τῷ μέντοι ὀκνηρῶς διακειμένῳ πρὸς τὴν ὑπακοὴν τῶν ἐντολῶν τοῦ Κυρίου πρῶτον μὲν συμπάσχειν πάντας χρὴ ὡς νενοσηκότι μέλει, καὶ ταῖς ἰδίαις παραινέσεσι τὸν προεστῶτα πειρᾶσθαι αὐτοῦ τὴν ἀῤῥωστίαν ἐπανορθοῦσθαι· ἐπιμένοντα δὲ τῇ ἀπει θείᾳ καὶ τὴν διόρθωσιν μὴ δεχόμενον ἐμβριθέστερον ἐλέγχειν ἐπὶ πάσης τῆς ἀδελφότητος, καὶ μετὰ πά σης παρακλήσεως προσάγειν αὐτῷ τὰς ἰατρείας· μὴ ἐντρεπόμενον δὲ μετὰ πολλὴν νουθεσίαν, μηδὲ ἰώμενον ἑαυτὸν ἐν τοῖς ἔργοις, ὡς αὐτὸν ἑαυτοῦ λυμεῶνα ὄντα, κατὰ τὴν παροιμίαν, μετὰ πολ λῶν μὲν δακρύων καὶ θρήνων, ὅμως δ' οὖν ὡς δι εφθαρμένον μέλος καὶ παντελῶς ἄχρηστον, κατὰ τὴν τῶν ἰατρῶν μίμησιν, τοῦ κοινοῦ σώματος ἀπο κόπτειν. Καὶ γὰρ κἀκεῖνοι, ὅπερ ἂν εὕρωσι τῶν μελῶν ἀνιάτῳ πάθει προειλημμένον, ὡς μὴ ἐπὶ πολὺ χυθῆναι τὴν βλάβην κατὰ τὸ συνεχὲς τὰ πα ρακείμενα διαφθείρουσαν, τομαῖς καὶ καύσεσιν ἐξαιρεῖν εἰώθασιν. Ὅπερ καὶ ἡμῖν ἐπὶ τῶν ἐχθραι νόντων ἢ ἐμποδιζόντων ταῖς ἐντολαῖς τοῦ Κυρίου ἐξ ἀνάγκης ἐστὶ ποιεῖν, κατὰ τὸ πρόσταγμα αὐτοῦ τοῦ 31.989 Κυρίου εἰπόντος· Ἐὰν ὁ ὀφθαλμός σου ὁ δεξιὸς σκανδαλίζῃ σε, ἔξελε αὐτὸν, καὶ βάλε ἀπὸ σοῦ. Ἡ γὰρ ἐπὶ τῶν τοιούτων φιλανθρωπία παραπλησία ἐστὶ τῇ ἀπαιδεύτῳ χρηστότητι τοῦ Ἠλεὶ, ᾗπερ ἐπὶ τῶν υἱῶν παρὰ τὸ ἀρέσκον τῷ Θεῷ χρησάμενος ἐλέγχεται. Προδοσία οὖν ἐστι τῆς ἀληθείας, καὶ ἐπι βουλὴ τοῦ κοινοῦ, καὶ ἐθισμὸς πρὸς ἀδιαφορίαν κα κῶν, ἡ πρὸς τοὺς πονηρευομένους ἐσχηματισμένη χρηστότης, μηκέτι μὲν γινομένου τοῦ γεγραμμένου· ∆ιὰ τί οὐχὶ μᾶλλον ἐπενθήσατε, ἵνα ἐξαρθῇ ἐκ μέσου ὑμῶν ὁ τὸ ἔργον τοῦτο ποιήσας; συμβαίνοντος δὲ ἐξ ἀνάγκης τοῦ ἐπιφερομένου, ὅτι Μικρὰ ζύμη ὅλον τὸ φύραμα ζυμοῖ. Τοὺς δὲ ἁμαρτάνοντας, φησὶν ὁ Ἀπόστολος, ἐνώπιον πάν των ἔλεγχε· καὶ τὴν αἰτίαν εὐθὺς ἐπάγει, λέγων· Ἵνα καὶ οἱ λοιποὶ φόβον ἔχωσιν. Ὅλως δὲ ὁ μὴ καταδεχόμενος τὴν παρὰ τοῦ προεστῶτος θεραπείαν προσαγομένην αὐτῷ ἀσύμ φωνός ἐστι καὶ αὐτὸς ἑαυτῷ. Εἰ γὰρ ὑποταγῆναι οὐ καταδέχεται, καὶ τὸ ἑαυτοῦ θέλημα ἐκδικεῖ, τί καὶ ἐστὶ μετ' αὐτοῦ; τί καὶ προστάτην αὐτὸν τῆς ἑαυτοῦ ζωῆς ἐπιγράφεται; Καταδεξάμενος δὲ ἅπαξ ἐγκαταλεγῆναι τῷ σώματι τῆς ἀδελφότητος, ἐὰν κριθῇ σκεῦος γενέσθαι ὑπουργικὸν, κἂν ὑπὲρ δύναμιν τὸ ἐπίταγμα εἶναι δοκῇ, ἐπιῤῥίψας τὸ κρῖμα τῷ παρὰ δύναμιν ἐπιτάσσοντι, τὸ εὐπει θὲς καὶ ὑπήκοον ἄχρι θανάτου ἐπιδεικνύσθω, μεμνη μένος τοῦ Κυρίου, ὅτι ἐγένετο Ὑπήκοος μέχρι θανάτου, θανάτου δὲ σταυροῦ. Τὸ δὲ ἀφηνιάζειν, καὶ ἀντιλέγειν, πολλῶν κακῶν ἀπόδειξιν ἔχει, πί στεως νόσον, ἐλπίδος ἐνδοιασμὸν, ὄγκον τε καὶ ὑπερηφανίαν ἤθους. Οὔτε γὰρ ἀπειθεῖ τις μὴ πρό τερον καταγνοὺς τοῦ