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De non judicando proximo

On the Jews saying, "You have a demon," and on, "Do not judge by appearance."

60.763 Just as the light-bearing moon, whitening the dark things of the night, and bearing its beauty as a torch for sailors and travelers on land and sea, makes the journey for each one unimpeded; so also the teacher of the Church, like the moon, illuminating through his word the splendors of the knowledge of God, guides to Christ the truth both those in the sea of this life who are running past the saltiness of pleasures, and those walking the Christ-bearing way. And holy Scripture also knows to name the teachers of the Church and those living a venerable life in the image of the moon and stars, as the prophet David says: The moon and the stars, which You have established.

But it is clearer to see from the words of the Apostle the difference of the saints named in the order of the sun and moon and stars: "There is one glory," he says, "of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars, for star differs from star in glory." Come then, let us also, shining faintly like a very small star, clearly show you the flashes of the evangelical thoughts. So the Jews said, it says, to the Lord: "You have a demon." But He said, "Do not judge by appearance, but judge with righteous judgment." O Jews, you say that I have a demon; compare my works with yours, and having investigated with the rule of your conscience, tell me, who then has a demon, I, or you? Do not judge by appearance, but judge with righteous judgment. You, having passed through the Red Sea as through a green field, and in the desert received water from a rock, turned into an ineffable sweetness, and from the midst of the air, a rain of quail falling down; and after the provision of so many and more other good things, when Moses went up the mountain, having made a calf, you worshipped the legion of demons; but I, having come, drove the legion of demons out from humanity. Who then has a demon, I, or you? Tell me. Do not judge by appearance, but judge with righteous judgment. You sacrifice your sons and your daughters to demons, but I raised from the dead the son of the widow and the daughter of the ruler of the synagogue; the one lying on a bier, by the touch of my hand, sending forth the healing power to the one lying within, I made whole; and the other with a word from death, as from sleep, I raised. Who then has a demon? I, or you? Do not judge by appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.

You, with the false words of Jezebel, having killed Naboth, and having dug up the vineyard, the begetter of gladness, made it a field bearing vegetables, the food of the weak, as the Apostle says, "For he who is weak eats vegetables;" but I, those like lowly vegetables, those fallen down by sickness, in the twinkling of an eye having healed and made whole, gave them the food of heavenly bread, and again I cultivated them into the same order, saying: "I am the vine, and you are the branches." Who then has a demon, I, or you? Tell me. Do not judge by appearance, 60.764 but judge with righteous judgment. You, having sawn Isaiah with a wooden saw, destroyed him; but I, the humanity that was dissolved by death, by partaking of the wood of the cross, having joined it together, raised it up. Who then has a demon, I, or you? Tell me. Do not judge by appearance, but judge with righteous judgment. You, having thrown the prophet Jeremiah into a pit of mire, choked him; I the one in the

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De non judicando proximo

Εἰς τὸ λέγειν τοὺς Ἰουδαίους, "∆αιμόνιον ἔχεις," καὶ εἰς τὸ, "Μὴ κρίνετε κατ' ὄψιν."

60.763 Ὥσπερ ἡ φαεσφόρος σελήνη τὰ τῆς νυκτὸς ἀμαυρὰ λευκαίνουσα, τοῖς τε

κατὰ γῆν καὶ θάλατταν πλωτῆρσί τε καὶ ὁδοιπόροις τὸ κάλλος δᾳδουχοῦσα, ἀνεμπόδιστον ἑκάστῳ τὴν πορείαν κατεργάζεται· ὡσαύτως καὶ ὁ τῆς Ἐκκλησίας διδάσκαλος δίκην σελήνης τὰς τῆς θεογνωσίας λαμπηδόνας διὰ λόγου αὐγάζων, τούς τε ἐν τῷ πελάγει τοῦ βίου τούτου τὴν ἁλμυρίδα τῶν ἡδονῶν παρατρέχοντας, καὶ τοὺς τὴν χριστοφόρον ὁδὸν βαίνοντας, ἐπὶ τὴν ἀλήθειαν Χριστὸν παραπέμπει. Οἶδε δὲ καὶ ἡ θεία Γραφὴ τοὺς τῆς Ἐκκλησίας διδασκάλους καὶ ἐν σεμνῇ πολιτείᾳ βιοῦντας, ἐν εἰκόνι σελήνης καὶ ἀστέρων ὀνομάζειν, ὥς φησιν ὁ προφήτης ∆αυΐδ· Σελήνην καὶ ἀστέρας, ἃ σὺ ἐθεμελίωσας.

Σαφέστερον δὲ ἔστιν ἐκ τῶν τοῦ Ἀποστόλου ῥημάτων ἰδεῖν τὴν διαφορὰν τῶν ἁγίων ἐπὶ τάξει ἡλίου καὶ σελήνης καὶ ἀστέρων ὀνομαζομένην· Ἄλλη δόξα, φησὶν, ἡλίου καὶ ἄλλη δόξα σελήνης, καὶ ἄλλη δόξα ἀστέρων καὶ ἀστὴρ ἀστέρος διαφέρει ἐν δόξῃ. ∆εῦρο τοίνυν καὶ ἡμεῖς δίκην ἀστέρος βραχυτάτου ὑπολάμψαντες, τὰς ἀστραπὰς τῶν εὐαγγελικῶν νοημάτων σαφῶς ὑμῖν ὑποδείξωμεν. Ἔλεγον οὖν οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι, φησὶ, τῷ Κυρίῳ· ∆αιμόνιον ἔχεις· ὁ δὲ, Μὴ κρίνετε κατ' ὄψιν, ἀλλὰ τὴν δικαίαν κρίσιν κρίνατε. Ὦ Ἰουδαῖοι, ἐμὲ λέγετε δαιμόνιον ἔχειν· συγκρίνατε τὰ ἔργα τὰ ἐμὰ τοῖς ὑμετέροις, καὶ ἐν τῷ γνώμονι τῆς συνειδήσεως ὑμῶν διερευνήσαντες, εἴπατε, τίς ἄρα ἔχει δαιμόνιον, ἐγὼ, ἢ ὑμεῖς; Μὴ κρίνετε κατ' ὄψιν, ἀλλὰ τὴν δικαίαν κρίσιν κρίνατε. Ὑμεῖς διὰ θαλάσσης Ἐρυθρᾶς, ὡς διὰ χλοηφόρου πεδίου διελθόντες, καὶ ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ ἐν ἀφράστῳ γλυκάσματος μεταποιούμενον ἐδέξασθε ὕδωρ ἐκ πέτρας, καὶ ἐκ μέσου ἀέρος ὀρτυγομήτραν προσπίπτουσαν· καὶ μετὰ τὴν τοσούτων καὶ πλειόνων ἄλλων ἀγαθῶν παροχὴν, Μωϋσέως εἰς τὸ ὄρος ἀναδραμόντος, μοσχοποιήσαντες, τῷ λεγεῶνι τῶν δαιμόνων προσεκυνήσατε· ἐγὼ δὲ ἐλθὼν τὸν λεγεῶνα τῶν δαιμόνων ἀπὸ τῆς ἀνθρωπότητος ἀπήλασα. Τίς οὖν ἔχει δαιμόνιον, ἐγὼ, ἢ ὑμεῖς; εἴπατε. Μὴ κρίνετε κατ' ὄψιν, ἀλλὰ τὴν δικαίαν κρίσιν κρίνατε. Ὑμεῖς τοὺς υἱοὺς ὑμῶν καὶ τὰς θυγατέρας τοῖς δαιμονίοις θύετε, ἐγὼ δὲ τὸν υἱὸν τῆς χήρας καὶ τὴν θυγατέρα τοῦ ἀρχισυναγώγου τεθνεῶτας ἀνέστησα· τὸν μὲν λάρνακι κατακείμενον ἁφῇ χειρὸς, τὴν ἰαματικὴν δύναμιν πρὸς τὸν ἔνδοθεν κείμενον ἐκπέμψας, ὑγίασα· τὴν δὲ ῥήματι ἐκ θανάτου, ὡς ἐξ ὕπνου, ἤγειρα. Τίς οὖν ἔχει δαιμόνιον; ἐγὼ, ἢ ὑμεῖς; Μὴ κρίνετε κατ' ὄψιν, ἀλλὰ τὴν δικαίαν κρίσιν κρίνατε.

Ὑμεῖς πλαστοῖς ῥήμασι τῆς Ἰεζάβελ τὸν Ναβουθὲ ἀποκτείναντες, τὸν τῆς εὐφροσύνης γεννήτορα τὸν ἀμπελῶνα ἀνασκάψαντες, λαχανηφόρον ἄρουραν ἐποιήσατε, ἀσθενούντων βρώματα, ὥς φησιν ὁ Ἀπόστολος, Ὁ γὰρ ἀσθενῶν λάχανα ἐσθίει· ἐγὼ δὲ τοὺς δίκην λαχάνων χθαμαλῶν, τοὺς ὑπὸ τῆς ἀῤῥωστίας καταπεσόντας, ἐν ῥοπῇ ὀφθαλμοῦ ὑγιάσας καὶ ὑγιοποιήσας, ἄρτου οὐρανίου βρῶσιν μετέδωκα, καὶ πάλιν εἰς τὴν αὐτὴν τάξιν ἐγεώργησα λέγων· Ἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ἄμπελος, καὶ ὑμεῖς τὰ κλήματα. Τίς οὖν ἔχει δαιμόνιον, ἐγὼ, ἢ ὑμεῖς; εἴπατε. Μὴ κρίνετε κατ' ὄψιν 60.764 ἀλλὰ τὴν δικαίαν κρίσιν κρίνατε. Ὑμεῖς τὸν Ἡσαΐαν ξυλίνῳ πρίονι πρίσαντες, διελύσατε· ἐγὼ δὲ τὴν διαλυθεῖσαν τῷ θανάτῳ ἀνθρωπότητα, τῇ μετουσίᾳ τοῦ ξύλου τοῦ σταυροῦ συναρμόσας ἀνέστησα. Τίς οὖν ἔχει δαιμόνιον, ἐγὼ, ἢ ὑμεῖς; εἴπατε. Μὴ κρίνετε κατ' ὄψιν, ἀλλὰ τὴν δικαίαν κρίσιν κρίνατε. Ὑμεῖς Ἱερεμίαν τὸν προφήτην εἰς λάκκον βορβόρῳ βαλόντες ἀπεπνίξατε· ἐγὼ τὸν ἐν τῷ