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Christi discipulum benignum esse debere

A DISCOURSE BY THE SAME AUTHOR, that a disciple of Christ must be gentle, and not be quickly angered.

48.1069 The divine voice of the Lord in the Gospels teaches us, which fulfills

the law, not abolishing it, not to be angry with a brother, and through this addition to the saying, He fulfilled "You shall not murder," removing the very root of murder, and cleansing the heart within, and not the hands without. For He imposed not such a punishment as the law did, an immediate one, but one at the judgment, saying: For whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. For the punishments from Christ are not swift, as in the law; but there is much postponement of just retributions, and the sentence afterward is dreadful. Just as He commands greater things, so also He is patient in a greater way, seeking a purification of the hear 48.1070 t, which is difficult to accomplish. Therefore, even if we are provoked to anger, He does not punish immediately; for if He punished immediately, there would be no return through repentance. For this reason He postpones the punishment, so that we may have time for repentance, so that he who was angry with his brother yesterday may repent today, and make a covenant with himself to no longer be angry with his brother; and in part we may become like God. For it transforms us from those things that alienate our life from the likeness of God, and leads us to the good that is according to nature after what has been set forth; for we are led to what is according to nature, and into the communion of the divine Spirit, and the perpetual life with God, striving for such great things. Let us pay attention to ourselves, and not through con 48.1071 tempt corrupt the work of becoming like God, because the Lord delays His coming; let us not give ourselves license to transgress the oracles of the Lord, let us not, despairing as if unable to attain this likeness to God, abandon the struggle, but let hope be present on account of Him who commanded and gives power for what was commanded.

But let contempt and negligence be far away, as we expect a more fearful punishment on account of His long-suffering. For as much as He is long-suffering, seeking our correction, so much will He be angered if we are not corrected, and He will come swiftly upon us as those who have insulted His grace. Let all the affairs of this world be despised by us, rather than the divine commandment; for many are the things that summon to anger those who are quick to anger, those who are easily provoked. But he who fears the commandment of the dreadful king, who commanded not to be angry at all, will spurn all those who wish to provoke him; and he will easily endure those who grieve him with words, he will persevere against those who wish to grieve him with deeds, and to the one who strikes his cheek, he will turn the other also, and he will nobly bear the one who brings a shameful word for the sake of insult, possessing the wondrous comfort of the beatitude, and so that he may be found obedient to the Lord, and extinguish his anger toward his brother, and flee the punishment appointed for it. For this is why Christ exhorts us to be free from bodily passion, to flee the love of money, and to abstain from the love of glory, and in general not to admit pleasure in oneself, so that we may not harm our soul on account of any of these things, and be disposed as strangers to the Holy Spirit. For he who is taught to despise money, how will he be provoked on account of money, even if someone wishes to seize it? And he who does not long for glory, how will he be provoked on account of glory? Take off, therefore, the worldly garment, and put on the spiritual one; take off the old man, that you may put on the new. For this reason it is called rebirth, and has been proclaimed

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Christi discipulum benignum esse debere

ΤΟΥ ΑΥΤΟΥ ΛΟΓΟΣ ὅτι χρὴ τὸν Χριστοῦ μαθητὴν ἤπιον εἶναι, καὶ μὴ ταχέως ὀργίζεσθαι.

48.1069 Ἡ θεία φωνὴ τοῦ Κυρίου ἐν τοῖς Εὐαγγελίοις διδάσκει ἡμᾶς, ἡ ἀναπληροῦσα

τὸν νόμον, οὐ καταργοῦσα, μὴ ὀργίζεσθαι τῷ ἀδελφῷ, καὶ διὰ τῆς προσθήκης ταύτης τοῦ λόγου ἀνεπλήρωσε τὸ, Οὐ φονεύσεις, αὐτὴν τὴν ῥίζαν ἐξαίρων τοῦ φόνου, καὶ τὴν καρδίαν ἔσωθεν καθαρίζων, καὶ οὐχὶ τὰς χεῖρας ἔξωθεν. Τιμωρίαν γὰρ ἐπέθηκεν οὐχὶ τοιαύτην, ἥνπερ ὁ νόμος, τὴν παρ' εὐθὺ, ἀλλὰ τὴν ἐπὶ τῆς κρίσεως, λέγων· Ὁ γὰρ ὀργιζόμενος τῷ ἀδελφῷ αὑτοῦ εἰκῆ, ἔνοχος ἔσται τῇ κρίσει. Οὐ γὰρ ὀξεῖαι αἱ παρὰ Χριστοῦ τιμωρίαι, καθάπερ ἐν τῷ νόμῳ· ἀλλὰ πολλὴ μὲν ἀναβολὴ τῶν κατὰ τὸ δίκαιον ἀνταποδόσεων, φοβερὰ δὲ ὕστερον ἡ δίκη. Ὥσπερ ἐπιτάττει τὰ μείζω, οὕτω καὶ μειζόνως μακροθυμεῖ, κάθαρσιν καρ 48.1070 δίας ἐπιζητῶν, ἣν δυσκόλως ἔστιν ἐξεργάσασθαι. ∆ιόπερ εἰ καὶ προαχθείημεν εἰς ὀργὴν, οὐκ εὐθὺ τιμωρεῖται· εἰ γὰρ παρ' εὐθὺ ἐτιμωρεῖτο, οὐκ ἂν ἦν διὰ μετανοίας ἐπάνοδος. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ὑπερτίθεται τὴν τιμωρίαν, ἵνα ἔχωμεν καιρὸν μετανοίας, ἵνα ὁ χθὲς ὀργισθεὶς τῷ ἀδελφῷ, σήμερον μετανοήσῃ, καὶ διαθήκην ἑαυτῷ διάθηται μηκέτι ὀργίζεσθαι τῷ ἀδελφῷ· καὶ κατὰ μέρος ὅμοιοι Θεῷ γινώμεθα. Μεταβάλλει γὰρ ἡμᾶς ἐκ τῶν ἀλλοτριούντων τὴν ζωὴν ἡμῶν ἐκ τῆς ὁμοιώσεως τοῦ Θεοῦ, καὶ ἄγει εἰς τὸ κατὰ φύσιν καλὸν μετὰ τὸ προκείμενον· εἰς γὰρ τὸ κατὰ φύσιν ἀγόμεθα, καὶ εἰς τὴν τοῦ θείου Πνεύματος κοινωνίαν, καὶ τὴν διηνεκῆ μετὰ Θεοῦ ζωὴν περὶ τηλικούτων ἀγωνιζόμενοι. Πρόσχωμεν ἑαυτοῖς, καὶ μὴ καταφρο 48.1071 νήσει τὸ ἔργον τῆς εἰς Θεὸν ὁμοιώσεως διαφθείρωμεν, ἐπειδὴ χρονίζει ὁ Κύριος τοῦ ἐλθεῖν· μὴ ἑαυτοῖς ἄδειαν δῶμεν εἰς τὸ παραβαίνειν τὰ λόγια Κυρίου, μὴ ἀπελπίσαντες ὡς μὴ δυνάμενοι τούτου τυχεῖν τοῦ καθ' ὁμοίωσιν Θεοῦ, καταλίπωμεν τὸν ἀγῶνα, ἀλλ' ἡ ἐλπὶς παρέστω διὰ τὸν προστάξαντα καὶ δύναμιν χαριζόμενον ἐπὶ τῷ προσταχθέντι.

Ἡ δὲ καταφρόνησις καὶ ἡ ἀμέλεια ἀπέστω, φοβερωτέραν ἡμῶν προσδοκώντων τὴν τιμωρίαν διὰ τὴν μακροθυμίαν. Ὅσον γὰρ μακροθυμεῖ, ζητῶν τὴν διόρθωσιν, τοσοῦτον ἀγανακτήσει μὴ διορθουμένων ἡμῶν, καὶ ὡς ἐξυβρίσασι τὴν χάριν ἐπελεύσεται ὀξέως. Καταφρονείσθω δὲ ἡμῖν ἅπαντα τὰ τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου πράγματα μᾶλλον, ἢ τὸ θεῖον πρόσταγμα· πολλὰ γὰρ τὰ εἰς ὀργὴν εἰσκαλούμενα τοὺς ὀξεῖς εἰς ὀργὴν, τοὺς εὐχερῶς παροξυνομένους. Ὁ δὲ τὸ πρόσταγμα τοῦ φοβεροῦ βασιλέως φοβούμενος, τοῦ κελεύσαντος ὅλως μὴ ὀργίζεσθαι, πάντων καταπτύσεται τῶν παροξύνειν θελόντων· εὐχερῶς δὲ ὑπομενεῖ τοὺς διὰ λόγων λυποῦντας, καρτερήσει δὲ πρὸς τοὺς δι' ἔργων λυπεῖν θέλοντας, καὶ τῷ τύπτοντι τὴν σιαγόνα, στρέψει καὶ τὴν ἄλλην, καὶ τὸν ῥῆμα αἰσχρὸν λοιδορίας χάριν ἐπάγοντα γενναίως ὑποίσει, θαυμαστὴν παραμυθίαν τοῦ μακαρισμοῦ κεκτημένος, καὶ ἵνα ὑπήκοος τῷ Κυρίῳ εὑρεθῇ, καὶ σβέσῃ τὴν πρὸς τὸν ἀδελφὸν ὀργὴν, καὶ φύγῃ τὴν ἐπ' αὐτῷ ὡρισμένην κόλασιν. ∆ιὰ γὰρ τοῦτο τῆς σωματικῆς συμπαθείας ἀπηλλάχθαι Χριστὸς παρακελεύεται, φεύγειν τε φιλοχρηματίαν, καὶ φιλοδοξίας ἀφίστασθαι, ὅλως δὲ ἡδονὴν μὴ παραδέχεσθαι ἐν ἑαυτῷ, ἵνα μὴ διὰ μηδὲν τούτων κακωθῶμεν τὴν ψυχὴν, καὶ διατεθῶμεν ἀλλότριοι εἰς τὸ ἅγιον Πνεῦμα. Ὁ γὰρ χρημάτων καταφρονεῖν διδαχθεὶς, πῶς διὰ χρήματα παροξυνθήσεται, εἰ καὶ βούλεταί τις ἁρπάζειν; καὶ ὁ δόξης μὴ ὀρεγόμενος, πῶς διὰ δόξαν παροξυνθήσεται; Ἀπόδυσαι τοίνυν τὸ κοσμικὸν ἔνδυμα, καὶ τὸ πνευματικὸν ἔνδυσαι· ἀπόδυσαι τὸν παλαιὸν ἄνθρωπον, ἵνα τὸν νέον ἐνδύσῃ. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο γὰρ ἀναγέννησις λέγεται, καὶ βεβόηται