State super vias et videte et interrogate de semitis antiquis quae sit via bona et ambulate in ea et invenietis refrigerium animabus vestris

28 Jul 2019

The Judgement Of Men


Ὁ μοιχὸς πάνατας ἀνθρώπους νομίζει μοιχοὺς εἴναι, καὶ ὁ κλέπτης πάντας ὁμοίως κλέπτας ὑπάρχειν οἴεται· ὁ δὲ σώγρων, καὶ ἅγιος, καὶ θεοφιλὴς ἀνὴρ πάντας ἀνθρώπους λογίζεται ὁσίους τυγχάνειν καὶ δικαίους. Σὺ δ' ἐπὶ πονηρίαν ἐκ μακρῶν τῶν χρόνων ἐξάκουστος ὑπάρχων, πάντας νομίζεις πονηρούς τε καὶ φαυλοτάτους εἶναι, καὶ τοῖς πᾶσι τοὺς πάντας διαβάλλεις καθεκάστην, ὡς μοχθηροὺς, καὶ σκαιοὺς, καὶ ἅγαν ἀλιτηρίους

Ἅγιος Νειλος, Βιβλιον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολὴ ΛΓ' Ζωσιμῳ Οἰκονομῳ

Source: Migne PG 79 97
The adulterer thinks every man to be an adulterer and the thief judges every man to be similar to himself and the wise and holy and pious man believes that every man is holy and righteous. And you, then, having been embroiled in iniquity for such a long time, think everyone evil and iniquitous, and so every single day you accuse everyone of utter wretchedness and ineptitude and utter sinfulness.

Saint Nilus of Sinai, Book 1, Letter 33, to Zosimus the Steward

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