Service And Wealth

Εἰ τῷ Χριστοῦ διακονεῖς θυσιαστηρίω, μετὰ τῶν αὐτοῦ νόμων μετέρχῃ την λειτουργίαν σου, πρᾶος καὶ ταπεινὸς τῇ καρδίᾳ φαινόμενος. Οὐ γὰρ πολιτικήν τινα χειρίζεις ἡγεμονίαν, τύφῳ καὶ κόμπῳ φλεγμαίνουσαν· ἀλλὰ διακονίαν εἰρηνικὴν καὶ ἀτάραχον. Εἰ δὲ πλοῦτος ἄδικος συναχθεὶς ὑπεραίρει σε, αὐτὸς μὲν θᾶττον ἐξεμεθήσεται, ρευστὴν ἔχων τὴν φύσιν καὶ ἄστατον· σὺ δὲ πολὺν ὀφλήσεις τὸν γέλωτα, τοῖς παρατρέχουσιν ὡς ἑστῶσι προσθέμενος Ἅγιος Ἰσίδωρος Του Πηλουσιώτου, Βιβλίον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολὴ ΡΝΖ' Πανσοφιῳ Ἀρχιδιακονῳ Source: Migne PG 78.288c

If you serve at the altar of Christ, you should attend to the laws of its service, and exhibit meekness and humility in your heart. You are not some grasping worldly ruler bloated with conceit and pomp and, but yours should be a peaceful and untroubled service. But if you have wickedly gathered wealth to exalt yourself, you should quickly vomit it forth as something naturally slippery and unstable, lest you become a laughing stock who has seized on passing things as something stable. Saint Isidore of Pelusium, Book 1, Letter 157, To Pansophios the Archdeacon 1 1 Pet 2.2