The Usefulness of Frights

Οὐδὲ οἱ φόβοι τοῖς εὐφρονοῦσιν ἄρχηστοι· ὡς δὲ ἐψω φημι, καὶ λίαν καλοὶ, καὶ σωτήριοι. Εἰ γὰρ καὶ γίνεσθαι αὐτοὺς ἀπευχόμεθα, γινομένοις γε παιδευόμεθα. Κάμνουσα γὰρ ψυχὴ, ἐγγυς ἐστι Θεοῦ, φησί που Θαυμασιώτατα λέγων ὁ Πετρος· καὶ παντὶ διαφυγόντι κίνδυνον, πλείων οἰκείωσις περὶ τὸν περισώσαντα. Μὴ οὖν ὅτι μετεσχήκαμεν τοῦ κακοῦ δυσχεραίνωμεν· ἀλλ' ὅτι διαπεφεύγαμεν, εὐχαριστήσωμεν. Μηδὲ ἄλλοι φανῶμεν τῷ Θεῷ παρὰ τὸν καιρὸν τῶν κινδύνων, καὶ ἄλλοι μετὰ τοὺς κινδύνους· ἀλλὰ βουληθῶμεν εἴτε ἐνδημοῦντες, εἴτε ἐκδημοῦντες, εἴτε ἰδιωτεύοντες, εἴτε τὰ κοινὰ πράττοντες, δεὶ γὰρ οὔτω λέγειν, καὶ μὴ λείπειν, τῷ σώσαντι κατακολουθεῖν, καὶ γίνεσθαι τῆς ἐκείνου μοίρας, μικρὰ τῶν μικρῶν καὶ χαμαὶ ἐρχομένων φροντίσαντες, Καὶ δῶμέν τι διήγημα τοῖς εἰς ὕστερον, μέγα μὲν εἰς δόξαν ἡμῶν, μέγα δὲ εἰς ὠφέλειαν ψυχῆς· τὸ δὲ αὐτὸ καὶ παίδευμα τοῖς πολλοῖς χρησιμώτατον, ὅτι κρείττων ἀσφαλείας κίνυδνος, καὶ συμφορὰ εὐημερίας αἱρετωτέρα· εἴ γε πρὸ μὲν τῶν φόβων ἥμεν τοῦ κόσμου, μετὰ δὲ τοὺς φόβους τοῦ Θεοῦ γεγενήμεθα. Ἅγιος Γρηγόριος ὁ Ναζιανζηνός, Ἐπιστολή Κ' , Καισαριῳ

Not even frights are without usefulness to the wise, or, as I should say, they are extremely valuable and salutary. For even if we wish that they might not occur, when they do happen they instruct us. For the troubled soul is near to God, as the most admirable Peter somewhere says,1 and everyone who escapes a danger is brought into nearer relation to the one who saved him. Let us not then be annoyed that we had a share of some evil but let us give thanks that we are delivered. And let us not show ourselves one thing to God in time of dangers, and another after the danger, but let us resolve, whether at home or abroad, whether we are in private or involved in public matters, for I must say this and not pass over it, that we follow the one who has preserved us, and that we be a part of that one, coming to think little of the little concerns of earth, and let us be a tale to those who come after, great for our glory and great for the benefit of our soul, and with that a very useful lesson to many, that danger is better than security and that misfortune is preferable to success, at least if before with our fears we were of the world but after them we become God's. Saint Gregory Nazianzus, Letter 20, to Caesarius his brother 1 Source unknown but cf Ps 34.19