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he who rules, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness. He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly; he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity. For God loves a cheerful giver. having all sufficiency, you may abound to every good work, as it is written: He has dispersed, he has given to the poor. That we should remember the poor. I charge the rich in this present age not to be high-minded, nor to trust in uncertain riches, but in God who gives us richly all things to enjoy; to do good, to be rich in good works, to be ready to give, willing to share, storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come. You, brothers, do not grow weary in doing good. Do not forget to do good and to share. For with such sacrifices God is well pleased. Mercy triumphs over judgment. Rich is he who shows mercy to many, and who in imitation of God gives from what he has. For God has given everything from His own creations. Understand then, you who are rich, that you ought to serve, having received more than you yourselves need; learn that others lack what you have in abundance. Be ashamed of holding on to what belongs to others; imitate the equality of God, and no one will be poor. Imitate the earth, O man, bear fruit as she does. Do not appear worse than what is without a soul. For she has nourished her fruits not for her own enjoyment, but for your service; But whatever fruit of good deeds you show, you gather it for yourself. Because the graces of good works upon the givers re 95.1464 turn. You have given to the hungry, and what was given becomes yours, returning with increase. For just as the grain that falls into the earth becomes a profit to the sower, so the bread cast down to the hungry yields a manifold benefit later. Let, therefore, the end of your earthly husbandry, through the sharing with the needy, be the beginning of the heavenly sowing. For sow for yourselves, he says, in righteousness. Why then are you distressed? Why do you trouble yourself, striving to shut up your wealth with clay and bricks? A good name is better than great riches. And if you admire money for its own worth, consider how much more profitable for glory it is to be called the father of ten thousand children than to have ten thousand staters in a purse. For you will leave your money here even if you do not want to, but the honor from good works you will carry away with you to the Master, when a whole multitude, standing around you before the common judge, calls you nourisher and benefactor, and all the names of philanthropy. God is the one who accepts; angels praising, people from creation calling you blessed; eternal glory, crowns of righteousness, the kingdom of heaven will be your rewards, Wells that are drawn from, become better flowing; but those left alone stagnate, and so with wealth, that which is stagnant is useless, but that which is in motion and changes hands is for the common good and fruitful. Give thanks to the benefactor, because you do not trouble the doors of others, but others come to yours. Lend, O rich man, to the poor. Trust God who always receives on His own account for the afflicted, and repays the grace from His own house. A trustworthy guarantor, having his treasures spread over all land and sea. Wealth that is scattered, in the way the Lord suggests, is destined to remain; but that which is held back is alienated. If you guard it, you do not have it; if you scatter it, you will not lose it. He has dispersed, he has given to the poor, his righteousness endures forever and ever. At a festival no one is grieved at giving up what he has at hand and acquiring what he needs in return, but the cheaper the price at which he buys the most valuable things, the more he rejoices, as his transaction has been a brilliant one. But you are grieved at giving gold and silver, that is, offering dust, that you may acquire the blessed life. Prepare your own burial beforehand. Piety is a good burial shroud. Depart clothed in all things. Make wealth your own adornment. Have

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ὁ προϊστάμενος ἐν σπουδῇ· ὁ ἐλεῶν ἐν ἱλαρότητι. Ὁ σπείρων φειδομένως, φειδομένως καὶ θερίσει· ὁ σπείρων ἐπ' εὐλογίαις, ἐπ' εὐλογίαις καὶ θερίσει. Ἕκαστος ὡς προαιρεῖται τῇ καρδίᾳ, μὴ ἐκ λύπης, ἢ ἐξ ἀνάγκης. Ἱλαρὸν γὰρ δότην ἀγαπᾷ ὁ Θεός. Πᾶσαν αὐτάρκειαν ἔχοντες, περισσεύητε εἰς πᾶν ἔργον ἀγαθὸν, καθὼς γέγραπται· Ἐσκόρπισεν, ἔδωκε τοῖς πένησι. Τῶν πτωχῶν, ἵνα μνημονεύωμεν. Τοῖς πλουσίοις ἐν τῷ νῦν αἰῶνι ἐπαγγέλλω μὴ ὑψηλοφρονεῖν, μὴ ἐλπίζειν ἐπὶ πλούτου ἀδηλότητι, ἀλλ' ἐπὶ τῷ Θεῷ τῷ παρέχοντι πάντα πλουσίως εἰς ἀπόλαυσιν· ἀγαθοεργεῖν, πλουτεῖν ἐν ἔργοις καλοῖς, εὐμεταδότους εἶναι, κοινωνικοὺς, ἀποθησαυρίζοντας ἑαυτοῖς θεμέλιον καλὸν εἰς τὸ μέλλον. Ὑμεῖς, ἀδελφοὶ, μὴ ἐκκακεῖτε καλοποιοῦντες. Τῆς εὐποιΐας καὶ τῆς κοινωνίας μὴ ἐπιλανθάνεσθε. Τοιαύταις γὰρ θυσίαις εὐαρεστεῖται ὁ Θεός. Κατακαυχᾶται ἔλεος κρίσεως. Πλούσιός ἐστιν ἐκεῖνος ὁ πολλοὺς ἐλεῶν, καὶ ὁ κατὰ Θεοῦ μίμησιν ἐπιδοὺς ἐξ ὧν ἔχει. Θεὸς γὰρ παντάπασιν ἔδωκεν ἐκ τῶν αὐτοῦ κτισμάτων. Σύνετε δὴ πλούσιοι, ὅτι διακονεῖν ὀφείλετε, λαβόντες πλείονα ὧν αὐτοὶ χρῄζετε· μάθετε ὅτι ἑτέροις λείπει τὰ ὑμῖν περισσεύοντα. Αἰσχύνθητε κατέχοντες τὰ ἀλλότρια· μιμήσασθε ἰσότητα Θεοῦ, καὶ οὐδεὶς ἔσται πένης. Μίμησαι τὴν γῆν, ἄνθρωπε, καρποφόρησον ὡς ἐκείνη. Μὴ χείρων φανῇς τῆς ἀψύχου. Ἐκείνη μὲν γὰρ τοὺς καρποὺς οὐκ εἰς ἑαυτῆς ἀπόλαυσιν, ἀλλ' εἰς τὴν σὴν ὑπηρεσίαν ἐξέθρεψεν· Σὺ δὲ ὃν ἂν ἐπιδείξῃ τῆς εὐποιΐας καρπὸν, σεαυτῷ τοῦτον συνάγεις. ∆ιότι τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἔργων αἱ χάριτες ἐπὶ τοὺς διδόντας ἐπ 95.1464 αναστρέφουσιν. Ἔδωκας τῷ πεινῶντι, καὶ σὸν γίνεται τὸ δοθὲν μετὰ προσθήκης ἐπανελθόν. Ὥσπερ γὰρ ὁ σῖτος πεσὼν εἰς τὴν γῆν, κέρδος τῷ προιεμένῳ γίνεται, οὕτως ὁ ἄρτος εἰς τὸν πεινῶντα καταβληθεὶς, πολύχουν τὴν ὠφέλειαν εἰς ὕστερον ἀναδίδωσιν. Ἔστω οὖν σοι τὸ πέρας τῆς γεωργίας διὰ τῆς τῶν δεομένων μεταλήψεως ἀρχὴ τῆς ἐπουρανίου σπορᾶς. Σπείρατε γὰρ ἑαυτοῖς, φησὶν, εἰς δικαιοσύνην. Τί οὖν ἀδημονεῖς; τί κόπτεις σεαυτὸν, πηλῷ καὶ πλίνθοις τὸν πλοῦτον ἀποκλεῖσαι φιλονεικῶν; Κρεῖσσον ὄνομα καλὸν ὑπὲρ πλοῦτον πολύν. Εἰ δὲ θαυμάζεις τὰ χρήματα διὰ τὴν αὐτῶν τιμὴν, σκόπει πόσον πρὸς δόξαν λυσιτελέστερον μυρίων παίδων πατέρα προσαγορεύεσθαι, ἢ μυρίους στατῆρας ἔχειν ἐν βαλαντίῳ. Τὰ μὲν γὰρ χρήματα καταλείψεις ἐνταῦθα καὶ μὴ βουλόμενος, τὴν δὲ ἐπὶ τοῖς ἀγαθοῖς ἔργοις φιλοτιμίαν ἀποκομίσεις πρὸς τὸν ∆εσπότην, ὅταν δῆμος ὅλος ἐπὶ τοῦ κοινοῦ κριτοῦ περιστάντες σε τροφέα καὶ εὐεργέτην, καὶ πάντα τὰ τῆς φιλανθρωπίας ἀποκαλῶσιν ὀνόματα. Θεός ἐστιν ὁ ἀποδεχόμενος· ἄγγελοι εὐφημοῦντες, οἱ ἀπὸ κτίσεως ἄνθρωποι μακαρίζοντες· δόξα αἰώνιος, στέφανοι δικαιοσύνης, βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν ἆθλά σοι ἔσται, Τὰ φρέατα ἐξαντλούμενα, εὐροώτερα γίνεται· ἐναφιέμενα δὲ κατασήπεται, καὶ πλούτου, τὸ μὲν στάσιμον ἄχρηστον, τὸ δὲ κινούμενόν τε καὶ μεταβαῖνον κοινωφελὲς καὶ εὔκαρπον. ∆ὸς χάριν τῷ εὐεργέτῃ, ὅτι οὐχὶ αὐτὸς διοχλεῖς θύρας ἑτέρων, ἀλλὰ τὰς σὰς ἄλλοι καταλαμβάνουσιν. ∆άνεισον ὁ πλούσιος τῷ ἀπόρῳ. Θεῷ πίστευσον τῷ ἀεὶ εἰς πρόσωπον ἴδιον ὑπὲρ τοῦ θλιβομένου λαμβάνοντι, καὶ οἴκοθεν ἀποδιδόντι τὴν χάριν. Ἀξιόπιστος ἐγγυητὴς, πανταχοῦ γῆς καὶ θαλάσσης ἡπλωμένους ἔχων τοὺς θησαυρούς. Σκορπιζόμενος ὁ πλοῦτος, καθ' ὃν ὁ Κύριος ὑποτίθεται τρόπον, πέφυκε παραμένειν· συνεχόμενος δὲ, ἀλλοτριοῦται. Ἐὰν φυλάσσῃς, οὐκ ἔχεις· ἐὰν σκορπίσῃς, οὐκ ἀπολέσεις. Ἐσκόρπισεν, ἔδωκε τοῖς πένησιν, ἡ δικαιοσύνη αὐτοῦ μένει εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦ αἰῶνος. Ἐν πανηγύρει οὐδεὶς λυπεῖται προϊέμενος τὰ παρόντα, καὶ ἀντικτώμενος τὰ δέοντα, ἀλλ' ὅσῳπερ ἂν ἐλάττονος τιμῆς τὰ πολυτίμητα πρίηται, τοσούτῳ χαίρει, ὡς λαμπροῦ αὐτοῦ τοῦ συναλλάγματος γενομένου. Σὺ δὲ λυπῇ χρυσίον καὶ ἀργύριον διδοὺς, τουτέστι χοῦν παρεχόμενος, ἵνα κτήσῃ τὴν μακαρίαν ζωήν. Προλαβὼν ἐνταφίασον σεαυτόν. Καλὸν ἐντάφιον ἡ εὐσέβεια. Πάντα περιβαλλόμενος ἄπελθε. Οἰκεῖον κόσμον τὸν πλοῦτον ποίησον. Ἔχε