Thoughts And Deeds

Ἡμεῖς, ω Βέλιστε, τῆς αὐτῆς τοῖς Γραμματεῦσι καὶ Φαρισαίοις ἐσμὲν ἔνοχοι κρίσεως. Ὥωσπερ γὰρ αὐτοὶ τῇ τοῦ νόμου μελέτῃ τὸ πράττειν τὸν νόμον ᾠήθησαν, ἀρκεῖν αὐτοῖς τὴν ἀπαγγελίαν τοῦ γράμματος πρὸς ἐργασίαν τοῦ πράγματος ἀπροσέχως νομίσαντες· οὕτως ἡμεῖς, αὐτῷ τῷ ἄπτεσθαι θυσιαστηρίων Θεοῦ, εγγίζειν Θεῷ φανταζόμεθα. Ἀλλὰ ταύτην ἡμῶν ὁ Κύριος ἐκκόπτων τὴν οἴησιν, φησὶν, Ἐὰν μὴ περισσεύσῃ ὑμῶν ἡ δικαιοσύνη πλὲον τῶν Γραμματέων καὶ Φαρισσαίων, οὐ δύνησθε εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὴν Βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν. Τοῦτο λέγων θεοτρεπῶς· Ἐαν μὴ τὴν δόκησιν, πρᾶξιν ἐργάσησθε, οἱ προσχήματι ἀρκεῖσθαι πρὸς διακονίαν Θεοῦ λογιζόμενοι, ἡ τοῦ Θεοῦ ὑμιν Βασιλεία οὐκ ἄν ἀνοιγήσεται. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἀληθής ἐστιν ἡ Βασιλεία, τοῖς ἀληθῶς αὐτὴν ζητοῦσιν ἀνοίγεται. Περισσεία δὲ τῆς τοῦ νόμου δικαιοσύνης ἡ τοῦ Εὐαγγελλίου ἐστὶν ὑψηλότης. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ τὴν πραξιν τιμωρεῖται, τὸ δὲ καὶ πρόθεσιν ψιλὴν, μέχρι Βάθους ἐννοιῶν, τὴν κριτικὴν ἀκρίβειαν ἐνδεικνύμενον.   Ἅγιος Ἰσίδωρος Του Πηλουσιώτου, Βιβλίον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολή ΟΘ' Τιμοθεῳ

We , best of men, are rendered liable to the same judgement as the Scribes and Pharisees. For they excelled in practice of care for the law and it pleased them to send forth tidings of what was written to do, deeds to which they were inattentive. So it is with us who think he who nears the Divine altar draws close to God. But the Lord cuts off this opinion of ours, saying 'Unless your righteousness exceed the the Scribes and the Pharisees, you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.' Which  divine utterance says: If you think it is opinion rather than the doing of deeds that is pleasing service to God, the kingdom of God shall not be open to you. Because the  kingdom is only truly open to those who truly seek it. The excellence of righteousness is the sublimity of the Gospel. He shall make trial of the deed, it will be brought forth naked, until from the depths of the mind accurate judgement comes forth. Saint Isidore of Pelusium, Book, 1, Letter 79, to Timotheus