Recommending A Bishop

Εἰμὶ μὲν ποιμὴν ὀλίγος καὶ μικροῦ ποιμνίου προεστηκὼς καὶ πολλοστὸς ἐν ὑπηρέταις τοῦ Πνεύματος. Ἡ χάρις δ' οὐ στενὴ οὐδὲ τόποις περιγραπτός. Διὰ τοῦτο δεδόσθω καὶ τοῖς μικροῖς παρρησία, ἄλλως τε καὶ περὶ κοινῶν καὶ τηλικούτων ὄντος τοῦ λόγου, καὶ μετὰ τοσαύτης βουλευομένοις τῆς πολιᾶς, ἣ τυχὸν ἔχει τι καὶ τῶν πολλῶν συνετώτερον.  Οὐ περὶ μικρῶν οὐδὲ τῶν τυχόντων βουλεύεσθε, ἀλλ' ὧν ἢ εὖ ἢ κακῶς ἐχόντων ἀνάγκη καὶ τὸ κοινὸν ἢ οὕτως ἢ ἐκείνως ἔχειν. Περὶ γὰρ Ἐκκλησίας ὑμῖν ὁ λόγος, ὑπὲρ ἧς Χριστὸς ἔπαθεν, καὶ τοῦ ταύτην Θεῷ παραστήσοντος καὶ προσάξοντος. Λύχνος μὲν τοῦ σώματός ἐστιν ὁ ὀφθαλμός, ὡς ἠκούσαμεν, οὐ μόνον οὗτος ὁ σωματικῶς ὁρῶν καὶ ὁρώμενος, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὁ πνευματικῶς θεωρῶν καὶ θεωρούμενος· λύχνος δὲ τῆς Ἐκκλησίας ἐπίσκοπος, ὃ δῆλον ὑμῖν κἂν αὐτοὶ μὴ γράφωμεν. Ἀνάγκη τοίνυν, ὥσπερ ἐκείνου καθαρῶς μὲν ἔχοντος ὀρθῶς ἄγεσθαι καὶ τὸ σῶμα, μὴ καθαροῦ δὲ τυγχάνοντος, οὐκ ὀρθῶς· οὕτω καὶ τῷ προστάτῃ τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν, ὁποτέρως ἂν ἔχῃ, πάντως ἢ συνδιακινδυνεύειν ἢ συνδιασώζεσθαι.  Πάσης μὲν οὖν Ἐκκλησίας φροντιστέον, ὡς Χριστοῦ σώματος, μάλιστα δὲ τῆς ὑμετέρας, ἣ μήτηρ σχεδὸν πασῶν τῶν Ἐκκλησιῶν ἦν τ' ἀπ' ἀρχῆς καὶ νῦν ἐστι καὶ νομίζεται, καὶ πρὸς ἣν τὸ κοινὸν βλέπει, ὡς κέντρῳ κύκλος περιγραφόμενος, οὐ μόνον διὰ τὴν ὀρθοδοξίαν ἄνωθεν πᾶσι κεκηρυγμένην, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν ἐκ Θεοῦ δεδομένην αὐτῇ προδήλως χάριν τῆς ὁμονοίας.  Ἐπειδὴ τοίνυν κεκλήκατε μὲν καὶ ἡμᾶς εἰς τὴν περὶ τούτου διάσκεψιν, ποιοῦντες ὀρθῶς καὶ κανονικῶς, κρατούμεθα δὲ γήρᾳ καὶ ἀρρωστίᾳ, εἰ μὲν καὶ αὐτοὶ παρείημεν, τοῦ Πνεύματος ἐπιρρώσαντος, οὐδὲν γὰρ ἄπιστον τοῖς πιστοῖς, τοῦτο τῷ παντὶ βέλτιον καὶ ἡμῖν ἥδιον, ἵνα καὶ ὑμῖν τι συνεισε νέγκωμεν καὶ αὐτοὶ τῆς εὐλογίας μετάσχωμεν· εἰ δὲ τὰ τῆς ἀσθενείας νικῴη, ὅσα γ' ἀποῦσι δυνατὸν συνεισφέρομεν·  Πείθομαι μὲν καὶ ἄλλους εἶναι παρ' ὑμῖν τῆς προσ τασίας ἀξίους, καὶ ὡς ἐκ πόλεως τοσαύτης καὶ οὕτω καὶ ὑπὸ τοιούτων ἠγμένης ἄνωθεν· ἑνὸς δ' οὐδένα δύναμαι προτιμῆσαι τῶν παρ' ὑμῖν τιμίων τοῦ θεοφιλεστάτου υἱοῦ ἡμῶν Βασιλείου τοῦ πρεσβυτέρου (λέγω δ' ὡς ὑπὸ Θεῷ μάρτυρι), ἀνδρὸς καὶ βίῳ καὶ λόγῳ κεκαθαρμένου καὶ μόνου τῶν πάντων, ἢ ὅτι μάλιστα, κατ' ἀμφότερα δυναμένου στῆναι πρὸς τὸν νῦν καιρὸν καὶ τὴν κατέχουσαν τῶν αἱρετικῶν γλωσσαλγίαν. Ταῦτα καὶ ἱερατικοῖς γράφω καὶ μοναστικοῖς καὶ τοῖς ἐκ τοῦ ἀξιωματικοῦ καὶ βουλευτικοῦ τάγματος καὶ τοῦ δήμου παντός. Εἰ μὲν οὖν τοῦτο συνδόξειε καὶ ἡ ψῆφος ἡμῶν κρατοίη, οὕτως ὀρθῶς τε καὶ ὑγιῶς ἔχουσα, ὡς μετὰ Θεοῦ ψηφιζομένη, καὶ πάρειμι πνευματικῶς καὶ παρέσομαι, μᾶλλον δ' ἐπιβέβληκα τὴν χεῖρα ἤδη καὶ θαρρῶ τῷ Πνεύματι. Εἰ δ' ἄλλο τι καὶ μὴ τοῦτο συνδόξειε καὶ κατὰ φατρίας καὶ συγγενείας τὰ τοιαῦτα κρίνοιτο καὶ ἡ ὀχλώδης χεὶρ πάλιν παρασύροι τὸ ἀκριβές, πράττοιτε καθ' ὑμᾶς τὸ ἀρέσκον, ἡμεῖς δὲ συσταλησόμεθα. Ἅγιος Γρηγόριος ὁ Ναζιανζηνός, Ἐπιστολή ΝΓ', Πρός Τους Ἐν Καισαρείᾳ Source: Migne PG 37.84b-85c

I am a little shepherd, and over a tiny flock I stand, and I am among the least of the servants of the Spirit. But Grace is not narrow, or fenced in by place. Whence let freedom of speech be given even to the small, especially when the matter is a public one and so great, and one in which all are interested, even to deliberations of men of white hairs, who perhaps speak with more wisdom than the many. You are deliberating on no small or light matter, but concerning one by which the common interest will necessarily be served well or wounded according to the choice of this or that one. For this is a matter of the Church, for which Christ suffered, and the one who is to present it and lead it to God. For the light of the body is the eye, 1 as we have heard, not only the bodily eye which sees and is seen, but that which contemplates spiritually and is contemplated spiritually. But the light of the Church is the Bishop, as is clear to you even without writing it. As then the straightness or crookedness of the course of the body depends upon the clearness or obscurity of the eye, so must the Church partake of the peril or safety incurred by the conduct of its leader. You must then take thought for the whole Church as the Body of Christ, but most of all for your own, which from the beginning was and is now the mother of almost all the Churches, and to which the community looks, like a circle described around a centre, not only because of its orthodoxy proclaimed from of old to all, but also because of the grace of unity so evidently given to it by God. Since then you have called us to your discussion of this matter, acting rightly and canonically, yet we are oppressed by age and infirmity, and if we could be present by the strength given us by the Holy Ghost, for nothing is incredible to them that believe, it would be best for all, and pleasing to us, that gathered together we might confer something on you, and ourselves partake of the blessing; but if weakness should be the victor, we will give as much as it is possible for one who is absent. I am assured that there are others among you worthy of the leadership, because of the greatness of your city and because of its great leaders from of old, but there is one man among you whom no one stands before, our son well beloved of God, Basil the Priest, and I speak before God as my witness, a man of pure life and word, and alone or all, or almost alone, able to stand against both the present times, and the prevailing loquacity of heretics. I write this to men of the priestly and monastic life, and to the dignitaries and councillors, and to the whole people. If then you should approve it, and my vote should prevail, being so just and sound, and given with God's aid, I am with you in spirit and will be, or rather I have already set my hand to the work and am confident in the Spirit. But if you should do otherwise, not agreeing me, and the matter is judged by cliques and relations, and the hand of the mob again sweeps away correctness, do as pleases you, and I shall stand fast. Saint Gregory Nazianzus, Letter 41, To the People of Cæsarea, in his father's name. 1 Mt 6.22