The Perils of Avarice

Πάνυ γὰρ ποικίλος μοι φαίνεται τῆς φιλαργυρίας ὁ δαίμων, καὶ πρὸς ἀπάτην εὐμήχανος, ὃς πολλάκις στενωθεὶς ὑπὸ τῆς ἄκρας ἀποταγῆς, τὸν οἰκονόμον εὐθὺς, καὶ φιλόπτωχον ὑποκρίνεται, καὶ τοὺς μηδέπω παρόντας ὑποδέχεται ξένους γνησιώτερον, καὶ ἄλλοις λειπομένοις ἀποστέλλει διακονίαν, καὶ δεσμωτήρια πόλεως ἐπισκέπτεται, καὶ τοὺς πιπασκομένους δῆθεν ἐξαγοράζει, γυναιξί τε κολλᾶται πλουσίαις, καὶ ἄλλους πάλιν ἀποτάξασθαι νουθετεῖ βαλάντιον ἀδρὸν κεκτημένους, καὶ οὕτως ἐξαπατήσας κατὰ μικρὸν τὴν ψυχὴν, τῆς φιλαργυρίας αὐτὴν λογισμοῖς ὑποβάλλει, καὶ τῷ τῆς κενοδοξίας παραδίδωσι δαίμονι. Ὡς πλῆθος εἰσάγει τῶν δοξαζόντων ἐπὶ ταῖς οἰκονομίαις ταύταις τὸν Κύριον, καί τινας κατ' ὀλίγον περὶ ἱερωσύνης συλλαλοῦντας προβάλλων λοιπὸν προμαντεύεται ταχὴν θάνατον τοῦ ὄντος ἱερέως, καὶ ὡς οὐκ ἃν ἐκφύγῃ μυρία ποιήσας προστίθησι, καὶ οὕτως ὁ παλαίπωρος νοῦς ἐνδεθεὶς τούτοις τοῖς λογισμοῖς, τοῖς μὲν μὴ κατεξαμένοις τῶν ἀνθρώπων διαμάχεται, τοῖς δὲ τοῦτο καταδεξαμὲνοις, ἑτοίμως δῶρα χαρίζεται, καὶ τῆς εὐγνωμοσύνης αὐτοὺς ἀποδέχεται· τινὰς δὲ διστασιάζοντας, τοῖς δικαστασαῖς παραδίδωσι, καὶ τῆς πόλεως ἐξορίζεσθαι παραγγέλλει·   τούτων δὲ λοιπὸν ἔνδον ὄντων, καὶ στρεφομένων τῶν λογισμῶν, εὐθὺς καὶ ὁ τῆς ὑπερηφανίας ἐφίσταται δαίμων, ἀστραπὰς συνεχεῖς κατὰ τὸν ἀέρα τῆς κέλλης τυπῶν, καὶ δράκοντας πτερωτοὺς ἐπιπέμπων, καὶ τὸ τελευταῖον κακὸν, στέρησιν φρενῶν ἐργαζόμενον, ἀλλ' ἡμεῖς τούτοις τοῖς λογισμοῖς  ἀπώλειαν ἐπευξάμενοι, μετ' εὐχαριστίας τῇ πενίᾳ συζήσωμεν, ̧ Οὐδὲν γὰρ εἰηνέγκαμεν εἰς τὸν κόσμον, οὐδὲ ἐξενεγκεῖν τι δῆλον ὅτι δυνάμεθα· ἔχοντες δὲ τροφὰς, καὶ σκεπάσματα, τούτοις ἀρκεσθησόμεθα, μεμνημένοι καὶ Παύλου, ῥίζαν πάντων τῶν κακῶν τὴν φιλαργυρίαν εἰπόντος. Εὐάγριος ὁ Ποντικός, Περὶ διαφόρων πονηρῶν λογισμῶν

For indeed it seems to me that the demon of avarice is exceedingly complex and most capable in his deceits, he who often when we are bemoaning the strictness of our renunciation, feigns to be a carer and a lover of the poor, and he would have us prepare a welcome for guests who have not yet arrived, or send supplies to those who are far away. He makes us consider those in the city prisons and the ransoming of those long enslaved, and that we should ingratiate ourselves with wealthy women, and again he inclines us to be obsequious to others who have a heavy purse, and thus, little by little, deceiving the soul, he casts it into avaricious thoughts and hands it over to the demon of vainglory. He then brings forth a crowd praising the Lord on account of our works, and in a little while has us talking to others about our ordination, and he prophesisies  that the present priest will soon die, and our long degenerate minds entangled in these thoughts, attacks any man who does not support us, while to those who do support it is ready to give gifts and judge them upstanding fellows, and some of those who doubt us we would have hauled before the judges and demand their expulsion from the city. And with these things within us and thoughts on them circling in our mind, the demon of pride is beside us, filling the room of our cell with lightning and winged dragons, trying to work that final evil, the utter loss of reason. But on all such thoughts let destruction come and with thanks let us live in poverty. 'For we brought nothing into the world, and it is certain that we can take nothing out of it. Having food and clothing, let us be content with them', 1 And remembering that St Paul said, 'Avarice is the root of all evil.' 2   Evagrius Ponticus, On Various Evil Thoughts 1 1 Tim 6.7-8 2 1 Tim 6.10