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SHEPHERD

The one who raised me sold me to a certain Rhoda in Rome. After many years I recognized her and began to love her as a sister. After some time I saw her bathing in the river Tiber, and I gave her my hand and led her out of the river. So, seeing her beauty, I reasoned in my heart, saying: “I would be a happy man if I had such a wife, both in beauty and in manner.” I only considered this, and nothing else. After some time, as I was traveling to Cumae and glorifying the creations of God, how great and excellent and mighty they are, I fell asleep while walking. And a spirit took me and carried me away through a certain pathless place, through which a man could not travel. And the place was precipitous and broken off by the waters. Therefore, having crossed that river, I came into the level country, and I put my knees down and began to pray to the Lord and to confess my sins. And as I was praying, the heaven was opened, and I see that woman whom I had desired, greeting me from heaven, saying: “Hermas, hail.” And looking at her, I say to her: “Lady, what are you doing here?” And she answered me: “I was taken up in order to expose your sins to the Lord.” I say to her: “Are you now my accuser?” “No,” she says, “but hear the words which I am about to speak to you. God who dwells in the heavens and created the things that are from what is not, and multiplied and increased them for the sake of His holy church, is angry with you because you have sinned against me.” Answering her, I say: “Against you have I sinned? In what way? Or when did I speak a shameful word to you? Did I not always regard you as a goddess? Did I not always respect you as a sister? Why do you falsely accuse me, O woman, of these wicked and unclean things?” Laughing, she says to me: “The desire for wickedness came up into your heart. Or does it not seem to you to be a wicked thing for a righteous man, if a wicked desire should come up into his heart? It is indeed a sin, and a great one,” she says. “For the righteous man considers righteous things. Therefore, by considering righteous things his glory is established in the heavens, and he has the Lord easily reconciled in his every affair. But those who consider wicked things in their hearts draw upon themselves death and captivity, especially those who acquire this world for themselves and glory in their wealth and do not hold to the good things that are to come. Their souls will repent, those who have no hope, but have despaired of themselves and their life. But you, pray to God, and he will heal your sins and those of your whole house and of all the saints.” After she had spoken these words, the heavens were shut. And I was wholly terrified and grieving. And I was saying within myself: “If this sin is recorded against me, how shall I be able to be saved? Or how shall I propitiate God concerning my perfected sins? Or with what words shall I ask the Lord that he may be merciful to me?” While I was considering these things and discerning them in my heart, I see before me a great white chair made of snowy wool. And an old woman came in most brilliant clothing, holding a book in her hands, and she sat down alone and greets me: “Hermas, hail.” And I, grieving and weeping, said: “Lady, hail.” And she said to me: “Why so sullen, Hermas? You who are patient, not given to anger, always laughing, why are you so downcast in appearance and not cheerful?” And I said to her: “Because of a good woman

1

ΠOIΜHΝ

Ὁ θρέψας με πέπρακέν με Ῥόδῃ τινὶ εἰς Ῥώμην· μετὰ πολλὰ ἔτη ταύτην ἀνεγνωρισάμην καὶ ἠρξάμην αὐτὴν ἀγαπᾶν ὡς ἀδελφήν. μετὰ χρόνον τινὰ λουομένην εἰς τὸν ποταμὸν τὸν Τίβεριν εἶδον καὶ ἐπέδωκα αὐτῇ τὴν χεῖρα καὶ ἐξήγαγον αὐτὴν ἐκ τοῦ ποταμοῦ. ταύτης οὖν ἰδὼν τὸ κάλλος διελογιζόμην ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ μου λέγων· Μακάριος ἤμην εἰ τοιαύτην γυναῖκα εἶχον καὶ τῷ κάλλει καὶ τῷ τρόπῳ. μόνον τοῦτο ἐβουλευσάμην, ἕτερον δὲ οὐδέν. μετὰ χρόνον τινὰ πορευομένου μου εἰς Κούμας καὶ δοξάζοντος τὰς κτίσεις τοῦ θεοῦ, ὡς μεγάλαι καὶ ἐκπρεπεῖς καὶ δυναταί εἰσιν, περιπατῶν ἀφύπνωσα. καὶ πνεῦμά με ἔλαβεν καὶ ἀπήνεγκέν με δι' ἀνοδίας τινός, δι' ἧς ἄνθρωπος οὐκ ἐδύνατο ὁδεῦσαι· ἦν δὲ ὁ τόπος κρημνώδης καὶ ἀπερρηγὼς ἀπὸ τῶν ὑδά των. διαβὰς οὖν τὸν ποταμὸν ἐκεῖνον ἦλθον εἰς τὰ ὁμαλά, καὶ τιθῶ τὰ γόνατα καὶ ἠρξάμην προσεύχεσθαι τῷ κυρίῳ καὶ ἐξομολογεῖσθαί μου τὰς ἁμαρτίας. προσευχομένου δέ μου ἠνοίγη ὁ οὐρανός, καὶ βλέπω τὴν γυναῖκα ἐκείνην ἣν ἐπεθύμησα ἀσπαζομένην με ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, λέγουσαν· Ἑρμᾶ, χαῖρε. βλέψας δὲ εἰς αὐτὴν λέγω αὐτῇ· Κυρία, τί σὺ ὧδε ποιεῖς; ἡ δὲ ἀπεκρίθη μοι· Ἀνελήμφθην ἵνα σου τὰς ἁμαρτίας ἐλέγξω πρὸς τὸν κύριον. λέγω αὐτῇ· Νῦν σύ μου ἔλεγχος εἶ; Oὔ, φησίν, ἀλλὰ ἄκουσον τὰ ·»ματα ἅ σοι μέλλω λέγειν. ὁ θεὸς ὁ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς κατοικῶν καὶ κτίσας ἐκ τοῦ μὴ ὄντος τὰ ὄντα καὶ πληθύνας καὶ αὐξήσας ἕνεκεν τῆς ἁγίας ἐκκλησίας αὐτοῦ ὀργίζεταί σοι ὅτι ἥμαρτες εἰς ἐμέ. ἀποκριθεὶς αὐτῇ λέγω· Eἰς σὲ ἥμαρτον; ποίῳ τρόπῳ; ἢ πότε σοι αἰσχρὸν ῥῆμα ἐλάλησα; οὐ πάντοτέ σε ὡς θεὰν ἡγησά μην; οὐ πάντοτέ σε ἐνετράπην ὡς ἀδελφήν; τί μου καταψεύδῃ, ὦ γύναι, τὰ πονηρὰ ταῦτα καὶ ἀκάθαρτα; γελάσασά μοι λέγει· Ἐπὶ τὴν καρδίαν σου ἀνέβη ἡ ἐπιθυμία τῆς πονηρίας. ἢ οὐ δοκεῖ σοι ἀνδρὶ δικαίῳ πονηρὸν πρᾶγμα εἶναι ἐὰν ἀναβῇ αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τὴν καρδίαν ἡ πονηρὰ ἐπιθυμία; ἁμαρτία γέ ἐστιν καὶ μεγάλη, φησίν. ὁ γὰρ δίκαιος ἀνὴρ δίκαια βουλεύεται. ἐν τῷ οὖν δίκαια βουλεύεσθαι αὐτὸν κατορθοῦται ἡ δόξα αὐτοῦ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς καὶ εὐ κατάλλακτον ἔχει τὸν κύριον ἐν παντὶ πράγματι αὐτοῦ. οἱ δὲ πονηρὰ βου λευόμενοι ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις αὐτῶν θάνατον καὶ αἰχμαλωτισμὸν ἑαυτοῖς ἐπισπῶνται, μάλιστα οἱ τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦτον περιποιούμενοι καὶ γαυριῶντες ἐν τῷ πλούτῳ αὐτῶν καὶ μὴ ἀντεχόμενοι τῶν ἀγαθῶν τῶν μελλόντων. μετα νοήσουσιν αἱ ψυχαὶ αὐτῶν, οἵτινες οὐκ ἔχουσιν ἐλπίδα, ἀλλὰ ἑαυτοὺς ἀπε γνώκασιν καὶ τὴν ζωὴν αὐτῶν. ἀλλὰ σὺ προσεύχου πρὸς τὸν θεόν, καὶ ἰάσεται τὰ ἁμαρτήματά σου καὶ ὅλου τοῦ οἴκου σου καὶ πάντων τῶν ἁγίων. Μετὰ τὸ λαλῆσαι αὐτὴν τὰ ·»ματα ταῦτα ἐκλείσθησαν οἱ οὐρανοί· κἀγὼ ὅλος ἤμην πεφρικὼς καὶ λυπούμενος. ἔλεγον δὲ ἐν ἐμαυτῷ· Eἰ αὕτη μοι ἡ ἁμαρτία ἀναγράφεται, πῶς δυνήσομαι σωθῆναι; ἢ πῶς ἐξιλάσομαι τὸν θεὸν περὶ τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν μου τῶν τελείων; ἢ ποίοις ·»μασιν ἐρωτήσω τὸν κύριον ἵνα ἱλατεύσηταί μοι; ταῦτά μου συμβουλευομένου καὶ διακρίνοντος ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ μου βλέπω κατέναντί μου καθέδραν λευκὴν ἐξ ἐρίων χιονίνων γεγο νυῖαν μεγάλην· καὶ ἦλθεν γυνὴ πρεσβῦτις ἐν ἱματισμῷ λαμπροτάτῳ, ἔχουσα βιβλίον εἰς τὰς χεῖρας, καὶ ἐκάθισεν μόνη καὶ ἀσπάζεταί με· Ἑρμᾶ, χαῖρε. κἀγὼ λυπούμενος καὶ κλαίων εἶπον· Κυρία, χαῖρε. καὶ εἶπέν μοι· Τί στυγνός, Ἑρμᾶ; ὁ μακρόθυμος, ὁ ἀστομάχητος, ὁ πάντοτε γελῶν, τί οὕτως κατηφὴς τῇ ἰδέᾳ καὶ οὐχ ἱλαρός; κἀγὼ εἶπον αὐτῇ· Ὑπὸ γυναικὸς ἀγα