Judgement And Mercy

Ἴσθι, θαυμάσιε, ὡς ἡ κρίσις ἀνέλεος τῷ μὴ ποιήσαντι ἔλεος, οὐκ ἐκ τῶν ἀλλοτρίων μόνον δωρεῶν, ὦν αὐτὸς τοὺς πτωχοὺς ἀποστερεῖς, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐκ τῶν οἰκείων, ὦν ἐκουσίως τὴν μετάδοσιν ποιεῖσθαι χρεωστεῖς. Ἅγιος Ἰσίδωρος Του Πηλουσιώτου, Βιβλιον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολή ΥϟΒ’ Ευσεβιῳ Ἐπισποκῳ Source: Migne PG 78.449c

Know, excellent fellow, that as there will be a judgement without mercy for those who are not merciful, 1 so not only with the gifts of others do you deprive the poor of what is theirs, but truly even with your own goods, which of your own will you should share with others. Saint Isidore of Pelusium, Book 1, Letter 492, To Eusebius the Bishop 1 James 2.13

Seeking And Finding And Losing

Καιρὸς γάρ, φησί, τοῦ μακρυνθῆναι ἀπὸ περιλήψεως. Ὁ πρὸς τὴν ἀρετὴν οἰκειωθεὶς τῆς πρὸς τὴν κακίαν σχέσεως ἠλλοτρίωται. Tίς γὰρ κοινωνία φωτὶ πρὸς σκότος ἢ Χριστῷ πρὸς Βελιάρ; ἢ πῶς δυνατόν ἐστι δυσὶ κυρίοις ἐναντίοις δουλεύοντα εὔνουν ἀμφοτέροις γενέσθαι; ἡ γὰρ τοῦ ἑνὸς ἀγάπη μῖσος τοῦ ἑτέρου ἐποίησεν. Ὅταν οὖν ἡ ἀγαπητικὴ διάθεσις περιφυῇ τῷ καλῷ, τοῦτο δέ ἐστι τὸ εὔκαιρον, ἐπηκολούθησε πάντως ἡ πρὸς τὸ ἀντικείμενον ἀλλοτρίωσις. Eἰ ἀληθῶς τὴν σωφροσύνην ἠγάπησας, ἐμίσησας πάντως τὸ ἀντικείμενον. Eἰ πρὸς τὴν καθαρότητα βλέπεις ἐρωτικῶς, ἐβδελύξω δηλονότι τὴν τοῦ βορβόρου δυσωδίαν. Eἰ τῷ ἀγαθῷ προσεκολλήθης, ἐμακρύνθης πάντως τῆς τοῦ πονηροῦ προσκολλήσεως. Eἰ δὲ καὶ πρὸς τὴν τοῦ πλούτου περιβολὴν ἄγοι τις τὸ τῆς περιλήψεως σημαινόμενον, δείκνυσι καὶ οὗτος ὁ λόγος, ποῖον πλοῦτον ἀγαθόν ἐστι προσπεριβάλλεσθαι καὶ ποίων κτημάτων περιβολὴν ἀποπέμπεσθαι. Oἶδα θησαυρὸν σπουδαζόμενον τὸν κεκρυμμένον ἐν τῷ ἀγρῷ, οὐχὶ τὸν πᾶσι φαινόμενον. Oἶδα πάλιν πλοῦτον ἀτιμαζόμενον, οὐ τὸν ἐλπιζόμενον, ἀλλὰ τὸν τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς προφαινόμενον. Διδάσκει τοῦτο ἡ τοῦ ἀποστόλου φωνὴ λέγουσα· Μὴ σκοπούντων ἡμῶν τὰ βλεπόμενα, ἀλλὰ τὰ μὴ βλεπόμενα· τὰ γὰρ βλεπόμενα πρόσκαιρα, τὰ δὲ μὴ βλεπόμενα αἰώνια. Eἰ ταῦτα νενοήκαμεν, καὶ τὸν ἐφεξῆς λόγον διὰ τούτων νενοηκότες ἐσόμεθα. Καιρὸς γάρ, φησί, τοῦ ζητῆσαι καὶ καιρὸς τοῦ ἀπολέσαι. Ὁ γὰρ νοήσας διὰ τῶν ἐξετασθέντων, τίνων προσήκει μακρύνειν ἑαυτὸν ἀπὸ τῆς περιλήψεως καὶ τίσι συνάπτεσθαι, γνοίη ἄν, τί τε προσήκει ζητεῖν καὶ τίνων ἡ ἀπώλεια κέρδος ἐστίν. Καιρὸς γάρ, φησί, τοῦ ζητῆσαι καὶ καιρὸς τοῦ ἀπολέσαι. Tί τοίνυν ἐστίν, ὅ με ζητῆσαι χρή, ὥστε ἐπιτυχεῖν τοῦ καιροῦ τοῦ καθήκοντος; Ἀλλὰ τί μὲν ζητεῖσθαι δέον ἡ προφητεία δείκνυσι λέγουσα· Ζητήσατε τὸν Kύριον καὶ κραταιώθητε· καὶ πάλιν· Ζητήσατε τὸν Kύριον καὶ ἐν τῷ εὑρίσκειν αὐτὸν ἐπικαλέσασθε, καὶ Εὐφρανθήτω καρδία ζητούντων τὸν Kύριον. Ἔγνων τοίνυν διὰ τῶν εἰρημένων, ὅπερ ζητῆσαι χρή, οὗ ἡ εὕρεσίς ἐστιν αὐτὸ τὸ ἀεὶ ζητεῖν. Oὐ γὰρ ἄλλο τί ἐστι τὸ ζητεῖν καὶ ἄλλο τὸ εὑρίσκειν, ἀλλὰ τὸ ἐκ τοῦ ζητῆσαι κέρδος αὐτὸ τὸ ζητῆσαί ἐστι. Βούλει καὶ τὴν εὐκαιρίαν μαθεῖν, τίς ὁ καιρὸς τοῦ ζητεῖν τὸν Kύριον; Συντόμως λέγω· ὁ βίος ὅλος. Ἐπὶ τούτου γὰρ μόνου εἷς καιρὸς τῆς σπουδῆς ἐστιν ἡ ζωὴ πᾶσα. Oὐ γὰρ ἀποτεταγμένῳ τινὶ καιρῷ καὶ χρόνῳ ἀφωρισμένῳ τὸ ζητεῖν τὸν κύριον ἀγαθόν ἐστιν, ἀλλὰ τὸ μηδὲ ὅλως διαλείπειν ἀεὶ ζητοῦντα τοῦτό ἐστιν ἡ ἀληθὴς εὐκαιρία. Οἱ γὰρ ὀφθαλμοί μου, φησί, διὰ παντὸς πρὸς τὸν Kύριον. Ὁρᾷς πῶς ἐπιμελῶς ἐρευνᾷ ὁ ὀφθαλμὸς τὸ ζητούμενον, οὐδεμίαν ἄνεσιν ἑαυτῷ διδοὺς οὐδέ τι διάλειμμα τῆς τοῦ ζητουμένου κατανοήσεως; Tῇ γὰρ τοῦ ∆ιὰ παντὸς προσθήκῃ τὸ διηνεκές τε καὶ ἀδιάλειπτον τῆς σπουδῆς ἐνεδείξατο. Ὡσαύτως δὲ νοήσωμεν καὶ τὸν τοῦ ἀπολέσαι καιρόν, κέρδος εἶναι κρίνοντες τὸ ἀπολέσαι ἐκεῖνο, οὗ ἡ ὕπαρξις ζημία τῷ ἔχοντι γίνεται. Kακὸν κτῆμα ἡ φιλαργυρία· οὐκοῦν ἀπολέσωμεν. Πονηρὸν ἀπόθετον ἡ μνησικακία· οὐκοῦν προώμεθα. Ὀλέθριον κτῆμα ἡ ἀκόλαστος ἐπιθυμία· τούτου μάλιστα πρὸ τῶν ἄλλων πτωχεύσωμεν, ἵνα διὰ τῆς τοιαύτης πτωχείας τὴν βασιλείαν κερδήσωμεν. Μακάριοι γὰρ οἱ πτωχοὶ τῷ πνεύματι, δηλαδὴ οἱ τοῦ τοιούτου πλούτου πενόμενοι καὶ τὰ ἄλλα πάντα τὰ πονηρὰ τοῦ διαβόλου κειμήλια. Mακαριώτερον μὲν τὸ μηδὲ τὴν ἀρχήν τινα κτήσασθαι, ἵνα καθόλου ἀκτήμονες τῶν μολυνόντων γενώμεθα. Ἅγιος Γρηγόριος Νύσσης, Εἰς Τον Ἐκκλησιασην, Ὁμιλια Ζ’ Source: Migne PG 44.717d-721a

'There is a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing.' 1 He who is a friend of virtue is hostile to evil. 'What fellowship does light have with darkness or Christ with Belial?' 2 How is it possible to serve two opposing masters and be well disposed to both? For the love of one generates hate for the other. 3 When, then, we lovingly cleave to the beautiful, and this is what is appropriate, so there follows utter estrangement to what is opposed. If you truly loved temperance, you would revile its opposite. If you lovingly looked on purity, you would abhor the stench of filth. If you cleaved to the good, you would certainly distance yourself from clinging to evil. And if anyone associates the meaning of this embrace with the embrace of wealth, this speech indicates how rich is this good which we should embrace and the embrace of those possessions we should be rid of. I know that treasure hidden in the field for which we should long is not apparent to everyone. 4 Again I know of wealth that should be disgraceful, that one should not hope for, but it is most evident to the eye. The Apostle teaches this, saying 'Let us not look to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen, for the things that are seen are transient but the things that are unseen are eternal.' 5 If we have understood these words, we will see their meaning by what now follows. 'There is a time to seek and a time to lose.' By what we have examined, knowing how to distance ourselves from embracing and how to cleave, we can know both what it befits us to seek and the benefit we gain from losing. 'There is a time to seek and a time to lose.' What, then, must I seek so that it is the appropriate time? But what needs to be sought the prophecy reveals, saying, 'Seek the Lord and be strengthened.' And again, 'Seek the Lord and when you find Him, call upon Him,' and, 'Let the heart rejoice that seeks the Lord.' 6 By these things let it be understood that we must seek and that discovery is a constant search. For it is not one thing to seek and another to find, but the gain obtained from our seeking is to seek further. Do you wish to learn the appropriate time to seek the Lord? To be brief: Your whole life. This alone is the right time to be zealously seeking. The appropiate time has no limit, and there is no restriction of time for the good of seeking the Lord, for the true appropriate time is always to be seeking, without interruption. It says, 'My eyes are always on the Lord' 7 Do you see how diligently the eye searches for what is sought? It never allows itself rest nor pauses from trying to grasp what it seeks. This 'always' set down here declares the need for continuity and unceasing zeal. Likewise let us consider the time for losing as gain, judging that the loss is a gain if the thing that we have is a defect. Avarice is a wicked possession we should lose. The memory of past wickedness we should cast away. Unbridled lust is a ruinous possession, and this especially before all others we should be poor in, that we might gain the kingdom of poverty. 'Blessed are the poor in spirit,' 8 clearly those who have nothing of such wealth, nor any wicked thing of the devil's other treasures. But one is even more blessed not to begin to seek to possess, so that we might be stripped of corruptions. Saint Gregory of Nyssa, On Ecclesiastes, from Homily 7 1 Eccles 3.5 2 2 Cor 6.14-15 3 Mt 6.24 4 Mt 13.44 5 2 Cor 4.18 6 Ps 104.4, Is 55.6, Ps 104.3 7 Ps 24.15 8 Mt 5.3

Little Faith

Nolite ergo solliciti esse, dicentes: Quid manducabimus, aut quid bibemus, aut quo operiemur? Haec omina, inquit, gentes inquirunt... Ac per hoc quid amplius habet a gentili, cujus adhuc infidelitas dum sollicitat animum, hujus vitae curis fatigat. Qui ergo de istis tantum confisus est a Domino, saltem modicam habet fidem: qui autem adhuc de his sollicitus est, infidelis censetur. Unde rara et paucorum est perfecta fides. Et ideo dubitanti adhuc Petro, post Domini jussionem, recte dicitur: Modicae fidei quare dubitasti? Quicunque ergo dubitat in aliquo praeceptorum Dei, vel minus ex eo confidit, quam promisit potens Deus, modicus est fide. Hinc quoque Jacobus: Qui indiget sapientia, postulet eam ex fide, nihil haesitans; quia qui haesitat similis est fluctui maris, qui a vento movetur. Quod si in divinis haesitare Christiano non convenit, in humanis et caducis post promissa quomodo fidelis dubitare poterit? Quid igitur fugis, Christiane? Quanto magis in promissis Dei haesitaveris, tanto minus invenies pro quibus sollicitus desudas. Et si, bonitate Dei etiam dubius acceperis quod sollicite quaesisti, non tua sollicitudo id fecit inefficax, sed Dei largitas, qui solem suum oriri facit super bonos et malos. Sanctus Paschasius Radbertus Corbeiensis, Expositio In Evangelium Matthaei, Lib IV Cap VI Source: Migne PL 120.311d-312b

Do not therefore be anxious, saying, 'What shall we eat, or drink, or wear?' All these things, He said, the Gentiles seek... 1 And because of this the more a man is as the Gentiles, while unfaithfulness yet troubles the soul, he shall be wearied with the cares of life. Therefore he who has confidence in the Lord concerning these things alone, he has little faith, and he who yet is anxious for these things, he is reckoned faithless. Whence perfect faith is rare and of few. And therefore to the yet doubtful Peter, after the exhortation of the Lord, rightly it was said, 'Man of little faith, why did you doubt?' 2 Whoever, then, doubts some commandment of God, or lacks confidence in Him, what Almighty God promises, he is of little faith. Whence James also says: 'He who lacks wisdom, let him ask from faith, doubting in nothing, because he who hesitates is like a wave of the sea tossed about by the wind.' 3 If it is not fitting for a Christian to doubt in Divine things, how after the promises shall it be possible for the faithful man to doubt in human and fallen things? Why, then, do you flee, O Christian? The more you doubt the promises of God, the more you shall find yourself trembling over what you fret over. And if from the goodness of God, you, who are a doubter, receive what you have anxiously sought, it was not your worry that did this, but it was from the largess of God, who makes the sun rise over the good and the wicked. 4 Saint Paschasius Radbertus, Commentary On The Gospel of Saint Matthew, Book 4, Chap 6 1 Mt 6.32 2 Mt 14.31 3 James 1.5 4 Mt 5.45

Possessions And Fear

Metuis ne patrimonium tuum forte deficiat si operari ex eo largiter coeperis, et nescis, miser, quia, dum times ne res familiaris deficiat, vita ipsa et salus deficit; et, dum ne quid de rebus tuis minuatur attendis, non respicis quod ipse minuaris, amator magis mammonae quam animae tuae; ut, dum times ne pro te patrimonium tuum perdas, ipse pro patrimonio tuo pereas. Et ideo bene Apostolus clamat et dicit: Nihil intulimus in hunc mundum, verum nec auferre quid possumus. Habentes itaque exhibitionem et tegumentum, his contenti simus. Qui autem volunt divites fieri, incidunt in tentationem et in muscipulam et desideria multa et nocentia, quae mergunt hominem in perditionem et in interitum. Radix enim omnium malorum est cupiditas: quam quidam appetentes naufragaverunt a fide, et inseruerunt se doloribus multis. Sanctus Cyprianus, De Opere et Eleemosynis Source: Migne PL 4.609b

You fear lest perhaps your estate shall fail if you begin to give plentifully from it, and yet you do not know, unhappy man, that while you fear lest your family property shall fail, your life and salvation are failing, and while you fret over your possessions diminishing, you do not see yourself diminishing, since you are a lover of mammon more than your own soul, and while you fear least your estate be ruined, you are being ruined for the sake of your estate. Therefore the Apostle rightly cries out and says: 'We have brought nothing into this world, nor indeed can we carry anything out of it. Therefore, having food and clothing, let us be content. For those who will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many harmful desires, which drown a man in ruin and in destruction. Cupidity is the root of all evil, which some desiring have made a shipwreck of the faith, and cast themselves into many sorrows.' 1 Saint Cyprian of Carthage, Treatise On Works And Alms. 1 1 Tim 6.7-10

Considering Salvation

Frequenter admonui vos, fratres, ut, dum licet, dum in spatio est, saluti vestrae omnibus modis consuleretis, et in hac vita brevi vitam vobis provideretis aeternam. Sapiens enim quisque intelligit quod haec vita hominum non ad quietem data, sed ad laborem, hoc est, ut hic laboret et in posterum requiescat. Hic autem requies nulla: tantis enim malis haec vita repleta est, ut comparatione ejus mors remedio putetur esse, non poena; nam ideo brevem illam fecit Deus, ut molestiae ejus, quia prosperitate non poterant, temporis exiguitate finirentur. Denqiue sanctus Job dicit: Piraterium est vita hominis super terram; hoc est, sive quod homines in hac vita omnia experiantur mala; piraterium enim Latine experimentum dici potest; seu certe piraterium, quod in hac vita circa homines diabolus, tanquam pirata desaeviat; piraterium enim habitaculum piratarum est. Tandiu ergo in piraterio sumus, quandiu in hac carne positi praedonum spiritualium tentationibus subjacemus; quamvis in hac ipsa vita etiam carnales nobis, qui sunt barbari, piratae non desunt; minus tamen eos timeo qui, etsi auferunt partimonia, non possunt auferre justitiam; si aurum tollunt, Christum certe tollere non possunt; si diripiunt argentum non possunt diripere Salvatorem. Quis igitur non festinat habere sibi Christum, quem non possit ab eo nec praedo diripere, nec hostis auferre, nec captivitas separare? Qui enim habet Christum, hominem non veretur inimicum. Quid enim facturus savienti? Pecora ejus abducet? Hoc etiam morbi lues facere consuevit. Armenta diripiet? Istud damnum abactores tolerando jam didicit. Ipsum fortassis non illi admovet taedia, sed removet; hoc enim illi intulit, quod majore cum molestia febris afferret, praesertim cum dicat Dominus: Nolite timere eos qui occidunt corpus, animam autem non possunt occidere. Illi igitur spirituales plus metuendi piratae sunt, qui non solum corpora hominum, sed et animas spoliare consueverunt; qui non tam aurum mundi quam aurum fidei auferre nituntur; qui non tam saeculi substantiam quam Christi sapientiam depraedantur. Nam ipsi nobis spirituales hostes hos carnales immittuntur, ut probemur in tribulatione positi quam simus confidentes in Deo, qui de solo ipso remedium postulemus. Sunt enim quidam qui, in tribulatione positi, dicant malis artibus hostes vincere, iisdem eos artibus debere superari, desperantes de Deo, a daemonibus victoriam flagitantes; miseri homines nesciunt quid faciunt, quid loquantur. Dum enim rebus suis metuunt, obliti sunt religionis ac fidei, qui res quidem suas forte non perdunt, sed quod est amplius suas animas perdiderunt. Sanctus Maximus Taurinensis, Homilia LXXXVIII, De non timendis hostibus carnalibus Source: Migne PL 57.453b-455b

I have frequently admonished you, brothers, that while it is permitted, while there is time, that you consider your salvation in every way, and that in this brief life you look toward eternal life. Wise is he who understands that this life of man is not given to leisure, but to toil, that is, that here a man labours and in the end he has rest. Here there is no rest, for this life is full with such evils, so that in comparison with it death may be thought a remedy, not a punishment; therefore God makes it short, so that its troubles which permit no prosperity have an end after a small time. Job says that life is a lair of bandits on the earth, 1 that is, that all men in this life experience evil, for the trial is to be understood as experience, for certainly a trial it is that in this life the devil surrounds men, and as a bandit rages against them, for indeed this is a dwelling place of bandits. Therefore, as long as we are in the lair, as long as we are in this flesh, so we are subject to the spiritual trials of brigands, and in this life which is carnal to us, we are not spared those who are barbarians and bandits. However I fear them less, who even if there are able to bear off possessions, are not able to carry off righteousness, who if they take away gold, certainly are not able to take away Christ, who if they steal silver are not able to steal the Saviour. Who, then does not hurry to have Christ, He who is not able to be taken by a brigand or borne off by an enemy, nor is He separated by captivity? Indeed he who has Christ does not fear any hostile man. What savagery will be done? Will cattle be driven away? This indeed is the custom of a plague. A herd will be seized? He has already taught that those who take must be suffered. And this perhaps does not drive one to weariness but removes it, for this instilled takes away a far worse trouble than sickness, certainly when the Lord says: 'Do not fear those who kill the body, and are not able to kill the soul.' 2 Therefore the spiritual bandits are more to be feared, who not only kill the bodies of men but are accustomed to despoil the soul, who do not so much exert themselves for the gold of the world, but to bear off faith, who do not so much destroy the things of this age, but ruin the knowledge of Christ. Yet these carnal foes do give admittance to our spiritual enemies, so that being placed in tribulation, rather than being confident in God, we seek a remedy from ourselves. They are those who when placed in tribulation would speak of conquering foes with evil deeds, that they should be overcome with their same arts, despairing of God, counseled by demons to victory, wretched men not knowing what they do, nor what they say. For while they fear for their own things, they have forgotten their religion and faith, they who would perhaps not lose their own things, but have already lost their souls. Saint Maximus of Turin, from Homily 88, That One Should Not Fear Carnal Enemies 1 Job 7.1 2 Mt 10.28

Possessions And Preaching

Nolite possidere aurum, neque argentum, neque pecuniam in zonis vestris. Non peram in via, neque duas tunicas, neque calceamenta, neque virgam. Haec itaque praecepta non solum apostolorum sunt, verum omnium eorum quibus praedicatio sancti Evangelii credita est, licet a multis corrumpantur. Quae tamen nisi recte intelligantur, non modo errare impellunt quoslibet incautos, verum dissonantiam inter sanctos evangelistas facere videntur. Unde primum cum gratis jubeat dare, superflua videtur auri argentique et pecuniarum interdictio. Praesertim cum et Judas ex commissu Domini loculos habuerit unde sibi emerent quae necessaria videbantur. Et alibi discipuli ierunt in civitatem emere sibi escas. Quo profecto patet Dominum necessaria non interdixisse, sed superfluo resecasse. Hinc quoque signanter ait: Nolite possidere aurum, neque argentum, neque pecuniam. Quoniam aliud est necessaria victus et vestimenti ad horam habere, aliud vero, longa sollicitudine quaesita, timide aut cupide possidere. Verumtamen, ut arbitror, non invidiosus thesaurus, neque sumptuosus, auri argentique, et aeris in zonis tantum haberi, sed docet quod praedicatorum in Domino tanta debeat fore fiducia, ut praesentis vitae sumptus, quamvis, non praevideant hos sibi deesse omnino non diffidat. Idcirco satis provide divitias detruncat, qui propemodum etiam necessaria praesentis vitae amputare festinat, ut ibi sit cor nostrum quo thesaurus esse probatur. Et ne forte viderentur apostoli magis lucri gratia praedicare, quam salutis humanae, omnia subtrahit quae possent esse scandali, et necessaria concedit ex Evangelio, quatenus eorum nemo de crastino cogitare videretur. Sanctus Paschasius Radbertus Corbeiensis, Expositio In Evangelium Matthaei, Lib VI Cap X Source: Migne PL 120.412a-d

Have no gold, nor silver, nor money in your pouches. Have no purse on the way, nor two tunics, nor shoes, nor a staff. 1 These commandments are not only for the Apostles, but truly for all who are entrusted with the preaching of the holy Gospel, lest they be corrupted by many things. Which, however, should be rightly understood, lest those who are incautious err in any way thinking there is some discord among the Evangelists. Whence when He first commands to give without payment, appears the prohibition of the superfluities of gold and silver and money. Certainly Judas was commissioned by the Lord to hold the purse by which he bought things that seemed to be needed. 2 And elsewhere the disciples went into the city to buy food. 3 Which openly shows that the Lord did not prohibit necessary things but rather that one should reject superfluous things. Which he indicates saying: 'Have no gold, nor silver, nor any money.' Because it is one thing to need necessities and have clothing for the moment, but another to have sought with great care, and to possess with fear or desire. However, so I judge it, it is not only that one should have neither envy producing treasure, nor excessive gold and silver and bronze in one's pouch, but that He teaches that the trust of the preacher should be in the Lord alone, that having taken up the things of this present life, they do not look to lack of them for themselves, and so they do not lack confidence. Therefore, it is  enough that He cuts off this looking for wealth, who near enough hurries to cast off the nesssities of the present life, so that it is proved that where the heart is there is the treasure. 4 And lest perhaps the Apostles seem to preach more for the sake of money than for the salvation of men, He takes away everything that might be a cause of scandal, allowing only necessities for the Gospel, as much as none of them seems to think about tomorrow. 5 Saint Paschasius Radbertus, Commentary On The Gospel of Saint Matthew, Book 6, Chapter 10 1 Mt 10.9 2 Jn 13.29 3 Jn 4.8 4 Mt 6.21 5 Mt 6.34

The Glory Of A Man

Μὴ φοβοῦ, ὅταν πλουτήσῃ ἄνθρωπος, ἢ ὅταν πληθυνθῇ ἡ δόξα τοῦ οἴκου αὐτοῦ. Ὅτι οὐκ ἐν τῷ ἀποθνήσκειν αὐτὸν λήψεται τὰ πάντα. Εἶδες ἀκρίβειαν λέξεως καὶ διαίρεσιν σαφεστάτην; Οὐδὲ γὰρ εἶπεν, Ὅταν πληθυνθῇ ἡ δόξα αὐτοῦ, ἀλλ', Ἡ δόξα τοῦ οἴκου αὐτοῦ, δεικνὺς ὅτι ἕτερον δόξα ἀνθρώπου, καὶ ἕτερον δόξα οἴκου. Τί τοίνυν δόξα ἀνθρώπου, καὶ τί δόξα οἴκου; ∆εῖ γὰρ ταῦτα εἰδέναι σαφῶς, ὥστε μὴ τὰ ὀνείρατα πρὸ τῆς ἀληθείας ἀσπάσασθαι. Οἴκου μὲν οὖν δόξα στοαὶ, περίπατοι, χρυσοῦς ὄροφος, ἔδαφος ψηφίσι καλλωπισθὲν, λειμῶνες, παράδεισοι, ἀνδραπόδων ἀγέλαι, τὰ ἔπιπλα τὰ πολυτελῆ, ὧν οὐδὲν πρὸς τὸν ἄνθρωπον. Ἀνθρώπου δόξα, πίστις ὀρθὴ, ζῆλος ὁ κατὰ Θεὸν, ἀγάπη, πραότης, ἐπιείκεια, ἡ ἐν εὐχαῖς ἐκτένεια, ἡ τῆς ἐλεημοσύνης φιλοσοφία, σωφροσύνη, κοσμιότης, τὰ λοιπὰ ἅπαντα τῆς ἀρετῆς μέλη. Καὶ ἵνα μάθῃς ὅτι ταῦτα τοῦτον ἔχει τὸν τρόπον, ὁ μὲν ἐκεῖνα κεκτημένος οὐ καρποῦται τὴν ἐξ αὐτῶν δόξαν, οὐδ' ἂν κληθείη τις καλὸς, ἐπειδὴ οἰκίαν ἔχει καλὴν, ἢ παράδεισον, ἢ λειμῶνα, ἢ πλῆθος ἀνδραπόδων, ἢ ἱματίων πολυτέλειαν. Τὸ γὰρ θαυμαστὸν ἅπαν περὶ τὸ κτῆμα ἵσταται, οὐ διαβαῖνον πρὸς τὸν ἔχοντα. Τὴν γὰρ οἰκίαν θαυμάζομεν, καὶ τὸν παράδεισον, καὶ τὸν λειμῶνα, καὶ τῶν ἱματίων τὸ κάλλος, ἃ τῶν ἐργασαμένων τῆς τέχνης ἐστὶν ἐγκώμιον, οὐ τῆς τῶν κεκτημένων ἀρετῆς, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὐναντίον ἅπαν τῆς κακίας ἀπόδειξις. Τοσοῦτον γοῦν ἀπέχει τούτων ἡ φύσις τῶν κτημάτων τοὺς ἔχοντας δόξῃ περιβαλεῖν, ὅτι καὶ λυμαίνεται αὐτὴν μεθ' ὑπερβολῆς. Καὶ γὰρ ὡς ὠμοὺς καὶ ἀπανθρώπους καὶ βαναύσους καὶ φιλοσοφίας ἀλλοτρίους, οὕτως ἅπαντες κωμῳδοῦσι τοὺς ἐν τούτοις τὴν περιουσίαν ἐπιδεικνυμένους· οὐ γάρ ἐστιν ἀνθρώπου δόξα ταῦτα, καθὼς εἶπον, ἀλλὰ τοῦ οἴκου· τοὺς μέντοι ἐν σωφροσύνῃ ζῶντας, κοσμιότητι, πραότητι, ἐπιεικείᾳ, τῷ Θεῷ μετ' ἀκριβείας ἀνακειμένους, αὐτοὺς θαυμάζομεν, ἐπαινοῦμεν, ἀνακηρύττομεν, ἐπειδήπερ αὕτη ἀνθρώπου μάλιστά ἐστιν ἡ δόξα. Ταῦτα γοῦν εἰδότες, μηδένα ζηλωτὸν εἶναι νομίζετε τῶν ἐκεῖνα περιβεβλημένων, ἃ μηδὲν πρὸς αὐτὸν ἔχει κοινόν. Ἅγιος Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος Εἰς Τον ΜΗ' Ψαλμον Source: Migne PG 55.513-514

Do not wonder when man is made rich, or when the glory of his house is multiplied; because when he dies he takes none of it. 1 Observe how carefully the words here make a wise distinction. For it does not say: 'When his glory is multiplied' but 'the glory of his house,' indicating that the glory of a man is one thing and the glory of his house is another. What, then, is the glory of a man and what is the glory of a house? It is necessary to know these things clearly least we embrace a dream for the truth. The glories of a house are porches, colonades, golden ceilings, floors adorned with precious stones, meadows, gardens, flocks of servants, expensive furnishings, of which nothing pertains to a man. The glory of a man is correct faith, zeal for God, love, meekness, mercy, perserverance in prayers, impartial liberality in alms, chastity, modesty, and all the other parts of virtue. And so learn that these things have their place, that he who possesses the former, gains no glory from them, nor is he called eminent, when he has fine buildings, or gardens, or fields, or crowds of servants, or precious garments. For all wonder being for what is possessed, it is not given to the possessor. For we praise a house, a garden, a meadow, a beautiful piece of clothing, and by that we commend the art of it, by which it was fashioned, but it is not a work of his virtue, but all that is his is a revelation of evil. For these things which are possessed do not take away the nature of him who has them but rather it impairs it with pride. For they are cruel, inhumane, vile, and utter strangers to philosophy, and so by what they possess they expose themselves as perfect targets for ridicule. So a man's glory is not in these things, as I said, but that is the glory of a house. Those who pass their lives in chastity, modesty, meekness and mercy , who devote all things to God, we wonder at them, we praise them, we preach them, for certainly this is the glory of a man. Think him not blessed, then, who has the former things and has nothing in common with the latter. Saint John Chrysostom, On The Psalms, from Psalm 48 1 Ps 48.17

Things Of God And Caesar

Εἴ τι τῆς ὕλης ἴδιον, εἴ τι πλάνης ἐφόδιον, εἴ τι ἀπάτης εἴδωλον ἐν ἡμιν ἡ ἔνοικος εἰσεφρησε ῥᾳθὺμία τοῦτο τῷ δημιουργῷ καὶ ποιητῇ τῆς κακίας ἐπιῥῥίπτεσθαι παρ' ἡμῶν ὁ Κύριος βούλεται. Εἴ τι δὲ ἀρετῆς σύμβουλον, εἴ τι σεμνότητος γνώρισμα, εἴ τι νήψεως καὶ ἀσφαλείας ἐμπόρευμα, τοῦτο Θεοῦ καὶ ἡγεῖσθαι καὶ πεπεῖσαι τυγχάνειν δώρημα, καὶ ἀξίαν αὐτῷ προσκομίζειν τὴν αἴνεσιν. Τοῦτό ἐστιν ὅ φησιν, Ἀπόδοτε τὰ Καίσαρος Καίσαρι, καὶ τὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ τῷ Θεῷ Ἅγιος Ἰσίδωρος Του Πηλουσιώτου, Βιβλίον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολή ΣΘ Θεογνωστῳ Source: Migne PG 78.316a

If something is one's own, if it is an instrument of error, if it is an idol of deceit in us bearing us off to negligence, this is what the Lord wishes to be cast from us to the architect and effector of vice. But if something is a symbol of virtue, if it bears the mark of nobility, if it is a possesion for vigilence and prudence, this we should consider and be persuaded is a gift of God, worthy to give Him thanks for. So it is said: 'Give to Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's' 1 Saint Isidore of Pelusium, Book 1, Letter 209 to Thegnostos 1 Mt 22.21

Love And Possessions

Et habebant omnia communia. Si charitas Dei diffunditur in cordibus nostris, mox profecto generat et proximi dilectionem. Unde propter geminum charitas ardorem, his Spiritus sanctus legitur apostolis datus. Magnum est fraterni amoris indicium, omnia communia possidere; nihil proprium habentes. Sanctus Beda, Super Acta Apostolorum Expositio, Caput II Source:  Migne PL 92 950d-51a

'And they had everything in common.' 1 If the love of God is diffused within our hearts, soon it gives birth to love of our neighbour. Whence on account of this double love, it is said that the Holy Spirit is given to the Apostles. It is a great sign of fraternal love to possess everything in common, claiming nothing as one's own. Saint Bede, Commentary on the Acts of The Apostles, Chap 2 1 Acts 4.32

Righteousness And Possessions

Nunc consideremus qualis vir justus esse debeat, si invidia fuerit exorta. Primum ut declinet eam, melius est enim sine lite abire, quam residere cum jurgio. Deinde ut talia possideat, quae secum aufferre possit: ut in nullo teneri ab adversario possit obnoxius, sed dicat: Cognosce si quid tuum est apud me Et quaesivit Laban, et nihil suum invenit apud Jacob. Magnus vir, et vere beatus, qui nihil potuit suum amittere, nihil alienum habere, hoc est, nihil minus habere, nihil superfluum. Itaque ille perfectus est, cui nihil deest: justus, cui nihil superest. Hoc enim est jusitiiae tenere mensuram. Quanta virtus cujus societas lucrum dabat, non irrogabat dispendium? Hoc est perfectum esse, adhaerentibus sibi commodi plurimum dare, nihil afferre incommodi. Denique is qui nocere cupiebat, inanem eum non potuit dimittere. Sapiens enim nunquam inanis est, semper in se habens amictum prudentie, qui potest dicere: Justitiam induebam, et vestiebam judicium, sicut dixit Job. Namque haec mentis sunt interna velamina, quae nemo alius possit auferre, nisi cum aliquem sua culpa despoliat. Denqiue sic despoliatus Adam, nudus inventus est: at vero Joseph etiam vestimento exteriore rejecto, nudus non erat, qui salva habebat indumenta virtutis. Nunquam ergo inanis sapiens. Nam quomodo inanis, qui de plenitudine Christi accipit, et servat acceptum? Quomodo inanis, cujus repletaest anima, quae  acceptae gratiae vestimenta custodit? Illud metuendum est, ne quis innocentiae velamen amittat, ne impii sacrilegae persecutionis impressione terminos justitiae supergressi, vestimentum animae ac mentis eripiant. Quod non facile accidit, nisi prius aliquem vox suae iniquitatis exuerit. Unde et David dicit: Si est iniquitas in manibus meis...decidam merito ab inimicis meis inanis: persequatur inimicus animam meam comprehendat. Sanctus Ambrosius Mediolanensis, De Jacob et Vita Beata, Lib II, Caput V Source: Migne PL 14 622B-623A

Now let us consider what sort of man the righteous one should be if envy has risen up. First he seeks to be gone from it, for better it is to leave without strife than to stay for quarrels. And he goes with such things as he possesses, which he is able to take with him, that in nothing his adversary be able to hold him indebted, but he may say, 'Know that what yours is mine.' 1 And so Laban searched but found nothing of his own with Jacob. 2 Great the man and truly blessed who could lose nothing which is his and nothing of another possess, that is, he has nothing less than he should have and nothing superfluous. He is perfect who lacks nothing, righteous to whom nothing is wanting, for this is to hold to the measure of righteousness. How much shall the presence of his virtue profit when he gives it, and not given be loss? This it is to be perfect, to allow only that which befits to adhere to one, and to carry off nothing that does not befit. Then the one who desired to harm was not able to send him away empty. But the wise man is never empty, always in himself he has the garment of prudence, he who is able to say, 'I put on righteousness, and vested myself in judgement,' 3 as Job said. For this internal covering of the mind no one is able to take away, unless by one's own fault it is stolen away. Thus Adam was robbed and found naked, but Joseph even when he lost his exterior garment was not naked, he who had the saving covering of virtue. 4 No one therefore who is wise is empty. For how can he be empty who has received the plenitude of Christ and guards what he has received? How can he be empty whose soul is full and who guards the vestment of grace received? This alone must be feared, the loss of the vestment of innocence, the overstepping of the bounds of righteousness unto impious sacrifice when persecution presses, and they tear away the vestment of soul and mind. Which easily happens, unless previously some counsel has stripped off one's own iniquity. Whence David says, 'If there is iniquity in my hands ... rightly I shall be cut off by my enemies empty; then let the enemy pursue my soul and seize it.' 5 Saint Ambrose, from On Jacob and the Good Life, Book 2, Chap 5 1 Gen 31.43 2 Gen 31.3 3 Job 29.14 4 Gen 39 7-23 5 Ps 7.4-5

Anthony's Speech

Μιᾷ γοῦν ἡμέρᾳ προελθὼν, καὶ πάντων τῶν μοναχῶν ἐλθόντων πρὸς αὐτὸν, ἀξιούντων τε παρ' αὐτοῦ ἀκοῦσαι λόγον, ἔλεγεν αὐτοῖς τῇ Αἰγυπτιακῇ φωνῇ ταῦτα· Τὰς μὲν Γραφὰς ἱκανὰς εἶναι πρὸς διδασκαλίαν· ἡμᾶς δὲ καλὸν παρακαλεῖν ἀλλήλους ἐν τῇ πίστει, καὶ ἀλείφειν ἐν τοῖς λόγοις. Καὶ ὑμεῖς τοίνυν ὡς τέκνα φέρετε τῷ πατρὶ λέγοντες ἃ οἴδατε· κἀγὼ δὲ ὡς τῇ ἡλικίᾳ πρεσβύτερος ὑμῶν, ἃ οἶδα καὶ ὧν πεπείραμαι μεταδίδωμι. Ἔστω δὲ προηγουμένως κοινὴ πᾶσιν αὕτη σπουδὴ, ἀρξαμένους μὴ ὑπενδοῦναι, μηδὲ ἐκκακεῖν ἐν τοῖς πόνοις, μηδὲ λέγειν· Ἐχρονίσαμεν ἐν τῇ ἀσκήσει· ἀλλὰ μᾶλλον ὡς ἀρχόμενοι καθ' ἡμέραν, τὴν προθυμίαν ἐπαυξήσωμεν. Ὅλος γὰρ ὁ τῶν ἀνθρώπων βίος βραχύτατός ἐστι, μετρούμενος πρὸς τοὺς μέλλοντας αἰῶνας· ὥστε καὶ πάντα τὸν χρόνον ἡμῶν μηδὲν εἶναι πρὸς τὴν αἰώνιον ζωήν. Καὶ πᾶν μὲν πρᾶγμα ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ τοῦ ἀξίου πιπράσκεται, καὶ ἴσον ἴσῳ τις ἀντικαταλλάσσει· ἡ δὲ ἐπαγγελία τῆς αἰωνίου ζωῆς ὀλίγου τινὸς ἀγοράζεται. Γέγραπται γάρ· Αἱ ἡμέραι τῆς ζωῆς ἡμῶν ἐν αὐτοῖς ἑβδομήκοντα ἔτη, ἐὰν δὲ ἐν δυναστείαις, ὀγδοήκοντα ἔτη, καὶ τὸ πλεῖον αὐτῶν, κόπος καὶ πόνος. Ὅταν τοίνυν πάντα τὰ ὀγδοήκοντα ἔτη, ἢ καὶ ἑκατὸν διαμείνωμεν ἐν τῇ ἀσκήσει, οὐκ ἴσα τοῖς ἑκατὸν ἔτεσι βασιλεύσομεν, ἀλλ' ἀντὶ τῶν ἑκατὸν αἰῶνας αἰώνων βασιλεύσομεν· καὶ ἐπὶ γῆς ἀγωνισά μενοι, οὐκ ἐν γῇ κληρονομοῦμεν, ἀλλ' ἐν οὐρανοῖς ἔχομεν τὰς ἐπαγγελίας· πάλιν δὲ φθαρτὸν ἀποθέμενοι τὸ σῶμα, ἄφθαρτον ἀπολαμβάνομεν αὐτό. Ὥστε, τέκνα, μὴ ἐκκακῶμεν, μηδὲνομί ζωμεν χρονίζειν, ἢ μέγα τι ποιεῖν. Οὐ γὰρ ἄξια τὰ παθήματα τοῦ νῦν καιροῦ πρὸς τὴν μέλλουσαν ἀποκαλυφθῆναι εἰς ἡμᾶς δόξαν. Μηδὲ εἰς τὸν κόσμον βλέποντες νομίζωμεν μεγάλοις τισὶν ἀποτετάχθαι· καὶ γὰρ καὶ αὐτὴ πᾶσα ἡ γῆ βραχυτάτη πρὸς ὅλον τὸν οὐρανόν ἐστιν. Εἰ τοίνυν καὶ πάσης τῆς γῆς κύριοι ἐτυγχάνομεν, καὶ ἀπετασσόμεθα τῇ γῇ πάσῃ, οὐδὲν ἄξιον ἦν πάλιν πρὸς τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν. Ὡς γὰρ εἴ τις καταφρονήσειε μιᾶς χαλκῆς δραχμῆς, ἵνα κερδήσῃ χρυσᾶς δραχμὰς ἑκατὸν, οὕτως ὁ πάσης τῆς γῆς κύριος ὢν, καὶ ἀποτασσόμενος αὐτῇ, ὀλίγον ἀφίησι, καὶ ἑκατονταπλασίονα λαμβάνει. Εἰ δὲ οὐδὲ πᾶσα ἡ γῆ ἀξία τῶν οὐρανῶν ἐστιν, ὁ ἄρα ἀφεὶς ὀλίγας ἀρούρας, ὡς οὐδὲν καταλιμπάνων, κἂν οἰκίαν ἢ χρυσίον ἱκανὸν ἀφῇ, οὐκ ὀφείλει καυχᾶσθαι ἢ ἀκηδιᾷν. Ἄλλως τε ὀφείλομεν λογίζεσθαι, ὅτι, κἂν μὴ ἀφῶμεν δι' ἀρετὴν, ἀλλ' ὕστερον ἀποθνήσκοντες καταλιμπάνομεν αὐτὰ πολλάκις καὶ οἷς οὐ θέλομεν, ὡς ἐμνημόνευσεν ὁ Ἐκκλησιαστής. Διὰ τί οὖν μὴ δι' ἀρετὴν ἡμεῖς καταλιμπά νομεν, ἵνα καὶ βασιλείαν κληρονομήσωμεν; Διὰ τοῦτο μηδὲ τοῦ κτᾶσθαί τις ἡμῶν ἐπιθυμίαν λαμβανέτω. Τί γὰρ κέρδος ταῦτα κτᾶσθαι, ἃ μηδὲ αἴρομεν μεθ' ἑαυτῶν; τί οὐ μᾶλλον ἐκεῖνα κτώμεθα, ἃ καὶ μεθ' ἑαυτῶν ἆραι δυνάμεθα, ἅτινά ἐστι φρόνησις, δικαιοσύνη, σωφροσύνη, ἀνδρεία, σύνεσις, ἀγάπη, φιλοπτωχία, πίστις ἡ εἰς Χριστὸν, ἀοργησία, φιλοξενία; Ταῦτα κτώμενοι, εὑρήσομεν αὐτὰ πρὸ ἑαυτῶν ἐκεῖ ποιοῦντα ἡμῖν ξενίαν ἐν τῇ γῇ τῶν πραέων. Ἅγιος Ἀθανάσιος, Βίος καί Πολιτεία Τοῦ Ὅσῐος Παρτός Ἡμών Ἀντωνιοῦ

One day when Anthony had gone out, and all the monks had come to him, asking to hear a word from him, he spoke these things to them in the Egyptian tongue: 'The Scriptures suffice for instruction, but good it is to encourage one another in the faith, and to anoint with words. And you, then, as children, come to a father asking to know things, and I as elder share what I know and my experience with you. Let this especially be the common desire of all, neither to give way having begun, nor to faint amid toil, nor to say: 'We have been such a long time in the discipline', but rather as though making a beginning every day let us increase our desire. For the whole life of man is very short measured against the ages to come, so all our time is nothing compared with eternal life. And in the world everything is sold at its price, and a thing is exchanged for its equivalent, but the promise of eternal life is bought for a pittance. For it is written, 'The days of our life are seventy years, and for the strong eighty, and the greater part is labour and sorrow. ' 1 When, then, we pass eighty years, or even a hundred in the discipline, not for a hundred years will we reign, but instead of a hundred we shall reign in eternity, and though on earth we fought, we will not inherit on earth, but in the heavens we have the promise; and again putting off the body which is corrupt, we shall receive it incorrupt.  So, children, let us not faint, nor think that we live long in this, or that we are doing something great. 'For the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which will be revealed to us' 2 . Nor when we look at the world let us think that we have renounced something great, for the whole earth is very small compared with all heaven. If, then, it happened that we were lords of all the earth and renounced it, it would be utterly unworthy of comparison with the kingdom of heaven. For it as if a man should despise a single copper drachma in order to gain a hundred golden drachmas, and so with he who is a lord of all the earth, and renouncing it, he gives up little and he receives a hundredfold. And if the whole earth is not equal in value to the heavens, then he who has given up a few fields leaves it as it were nothing, and even if he has given up a house or much gold he should not boast nor be downcast. Besides, we should think that even if we do not abandon them for the sake of virtue, yet afterwards when we die we shall leave them behind, very often to those to whom we do not wish, as Ecclesiastes says. 3Why then should we not give them up for the sake of virtue, that we may inherit a kingdom? Thus let not the desire of possession take hold of anyone. For what profit is it to acquire these things which we cannot take with us? Why do we not rather acquire those things which we can take away with us, that is, prudence, righteousness, temperance, courage, understanding, love, care for the poor, faith in Christ, freedom from anger, hospitality? Having these, we shall find them of themselves making for us a welcome there in the land of the meek. Saint Athanasius, The Life of Saint Anthony 1 Ps 89.10 2 Rom 8.18 3 Eccles 2.17 -21

A Rich Young Man

Ἐξῆς δὲ τούτοις λέγεται, ὅτι ' Ἀκούσας τὸν λόγον ὁ νεανίσκος, ἀπῆλθε λυπούμενος· ἥν γὰρ ἔχων κτήματα πολλά. Καὶ ὅψει γε, ὡς πρὸς τὴν ἀναγωγὴν τίνα, τρόπον δυσαποσπάστως ἔχομεν τοῦ φρονεῖν τὸν πλοῦτον ἀγαθὸν εἶναι, ἤ τὴν κάτω δόξαν· ἀλλὰ καὶ μᾶλλον θέλομεν, ἐπεὶ ἀγαπῶμεν τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν, τυχεῖν τῶν φαύλως ἐπιθυμουμένων, ἢ ἀπαλλαγῆναι τῆς ἐπιθυμίας· καὶ μᾶλλον περιπεσεῖν οἶς φανταζόμεθα φοβεροῖς, ἥπερ ἀποθέσθαι τὸν ἐχθρὸν τῷ φόβῳ τοῦ Θεοῦ φόβον. Ἀλλ' οὐδὲ πρεσβύτερός τις εἰσῆκται καθεστηκὼς, οὐδὲ ἀνὴρ καταρήσας τὰ τοῦ νηπίου, ἀλλὰ νεανίσκος ὁ τὸν λόγον ἀκούσας, καὶ ἀπελθὼν λυπούμενος. Τοιοῦτος γὰρ ἧν τὴν ψυχὴν, διὸ καὶ καταλιπὼν τὸν Ἰησοὺν ἀπῆλθεν· ἐπὶ ψόγῳ γὰρ εἴρηται τό· 'Ἀπῆλθε,' καὶ ' ἀπῆλθε λυπούμενος, λύπην' τὴν τοῦ κόσμου, ' τὴν θάνατον κατεργαζομένην.' Τίς γὰρ ἀγαπῶν τὸ ὀργίζεσθαι, καὶ τὸ λυπεῖσθαι, ἔχων κτήματα πολλὰ ἂπερ ἠγαπα, διὸ ἀπῆλθε λυπούμενος, καὶ ὅσα ἀπὸ κακίας ἧν κεκρατηκότα τῆς ψυχῆς αὐτοῦ; Εἰ μέντοι ἐπὶ τῆς ἱστορίας μένοις κατά τινα τῶν προαποδεδομένων διήγησιν, ἐξ ἡμισείας εὕροις ἄν ἐπαινετὸν, καὶ ἐξ ἡμισείας ψεκτὸν τὸν νεανίσκον τοῦτον· ᾗ μὲν γὰρ οὐκ ἐμοίχευσεν, οὐδὲ ἐφόνευσεν, οὐδὲ ἔκλεψεν, οὐδὲ ἐψευδοματρύρησεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἥδη νεανίσκος ὥν ἐτίμησε τὸν πατέρα καὶ τὴν μητέρα, καὶ ἐλυπήθη ἐπὶ τοῖς τὴν τελειότητα ὑποτιθεμένοις λόγοις τοῦ Ἰησοῦ, καὶ ἐπαγγελλομένοις αὐτὴν, εἰ ἀποδοῖτο τὰ ὑπάρχοντα, ἀστεῖόν τι ἧν ἐν αὐτῷ· ᾗ δὲ ἀπῆλθεν ἀπὸ τοῦ Ἰησοῦ λυπούμενος διὰ τὰ κτήματα, δέον αὐτὸν χαίρειν, ὅτι ἀντ' ἐκείνων ἔμελλεν ἔχειν θησαυρὸν ἐν οὐρανῳ, καὶ ἀκολουθῶν τῷ Ἰησοῦ κατ' ἴχνη βαίνειν υἱοῦ Θεοῦ, ψεκτὸς ἡν. Ὀριγεν, Κατὰ Ματθαιον Ἐξηγητικων, Τομος ΙΕ'

After these thing it is said 'When the young man heard the word, he went away grieving, for he had many possessions' 1 And see, as though in anagogical terms, we have become stubbornly fixed in thinking that wealth is good, rather than the opinion below. But even more we wish, since we love even the desire, to touch upon those things that are desired worthlessly, or rather to be freed from the desire, and still more the fall into those fears we imagine which heap up fear of the enemy rather than the fear of God. Now he was not introduced as an elder in a mature state, nor as a man disdaining the things of childhood, but as a youth who hears the word and goes away grieving. For such is his soul, since indeed after leaving Jesus he went away, for it is said as a matter of blame that 'He went away' and 'he went away grieving the grief' that is 'of the world' which produces' death' 2 For someone who loves inclines to anger and to grief, and having many possessions which he loved, since he went away grieving, what evil was it that wrought this state of soul? Attending first to the literal level of the explanation of things previously set forth, you would find half a measure of praise and half of blame given to this youth. For he did not commit adultery, not murder, nor steal, nor bear false witness, but, being a young man, he honoured his mother and father, and yet he was grieved at the teachings of Jesus set forth about perfection and what was promised to him, that if he would give away his property, there would be something beneficial for him, and as he went away from Jesus grieving on account of his possessions, he became blameworthy, for he should have rejoiced, because instead of these things he would have had treasure in heaven, even following Jesus, walking in the footsteps of the son of God. Origen, Commentary on Matthew, Book 15 1 Mt 19.22 2 2 Cor 7.10

Dealing with a Thief

Ὁ αὐτὸς ἀββᾶς Μακάριος, ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ ὤν, εὐρεν ἄνθρωπον ἔχοντα κτῆνος καὶ συλοῦντα τὰς χρείας αύτοῦ· καὶ αὐτὸς ὡς ξένος παραστὰς τῷ συλοῦντι, συνεγέμου τὸ κτῆνος, καὶ μετὰ πολλης ἡσυχίας προέπεμπεν αὐτὸν, λέγων, ὅτι Ούδὲν εἰσηνέγκαμεν εἰς τὸν κόσμον, δῆλον ὅτι οὐδὲ ἐξενεγκεῖν τι δυνάμεθα. Ὁ Κύριος ἔδωκεν· ὡς αὐτὸς ἠθήλησεν, οὕτως καὶ ἐγένετο. Εὐλογητὸς Κύριος ἐπὶ πᾶσιν. Ἀποφθεγματα των ἀγιων γεροντων, Παλλαδιος

While he was in Egypt Father Macarius came upon a man who owned a beast of burden stealing his possessions, and he came to the thief as if he was a stranger, and he helped him to load the animal, and he saw him off wishing him peace, saying, 'We have brought nothing into this world, and we cannot take anything out of the world.' 1 'The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord in all things.' 2 Sayings of the Desert Fathers, Palladius of Galatia  1 1 Tim. 6.7 2 Job 1.21

Patience And Loss

Si detrimento rei familiaris animus concitatur, omni paene in loco de contemnendo saeculo scripturis dominicis commonetur, nec maior ad pecuniae contemptum exhortatio subiacet quam quod ipse dominus in nullis diuitiis inuenitur. Semper pauperes iustificat, diuites praedamnat. Ita detrimentorum patientiae fastidium opulentiae praeministrauit, demonstrans per abiectionem diuitiarum laesuras quoque earum computandas non esse. Quod ergo nobis appetere minime opus est, quia nec dominus appetiuit, detruncatum uel etiam ademptum non aegre sustinere debemus. Cupiditatem omnium malorum radicem spiritus domini per apostolum pronuntiauit: eam non in concupiscentia alieni tantum constitutam interpretemur. Nam et quod nostrum uidetur alienum est: nihil enim nostrum, quoniam Dei omnia, cuius ipsi quoque nos sumus. Itaque si damno adfecti inpatienter senserimus, non de nostro amissum dolentes adfines cupiditatis deprehendemur: alienum quaerimus, cum alienum amissum aegre sustinemus. Qui damni inpatientia concitatur terrena caelestibus anteponendo, de proximo in Deum peccat: spiritum enim quem a domino sumpsit saecularis rei gratia concutit. Libenter igitur terrena amittamus, caelestia tueamur; totum licet saeculum pereat, dum patientiam lucrifaciam! Iam qui minutum sibi aliquid aut furto aut ui aut etiam ignauia non constanter sustinere constituit, nescio an facile uel ex animo ipse rei suae manum inferre possit in causa elemosinae. Quis enim ab alio secari omnino non sustinens ipse ferrum in corpore suo ducit? Patientia in detrimentis exercitatio est largiendi et communicandi: non piget donare eum qui non timet perdere. Tertullianus, De Patientia

If one's soul is troubled by loss of some property, it is reminded by the Lord's Scriptures in nearly every place to scorn the world; nor is there a greater exhortation presented that we should hold money in contempt than that the Lord Himself is not found amid riches. He always justifies the poor, condemns the rich. So He furnishes patience for losses and scorn for opulence, demonstrating, through rejection of riches, that the wounds of them should not be numbered. That which, therefore, we have not the smallest need to seek because the Lord did not seek after it, we ought to endure the reduction or even complete removal of it without sickness. Covetousness is the root of all evils the spirit of the Lord has pronounced through the apostle; and let us not interpret that covetousness is constituted of merely concupiscence for what is another's, for even what seems ours is another's; nothing is ours because everything is God's, we ourselves also. Thus if when suffering a loss we feel it impatiently our lamenting what is lost from what is not our own shall be marked as bordering on covetousness: we seek what is another's when we suffer ill the loss of what is another's. He who is disturbed with impatience of loss, by giving precedence to the earthly over the heavenly, sins directly against God because he shocks the Spirit which he has received from the Lord for the sake of a worldly thing. Willingly, therefore, let us lose things earthly and let us keep things heavenly; may the whole world perish while I make profit in endurance! Now he who is not firmly resolved to endure with constancy the loss of something, either by theft, or else by force, or even by negligence, I know not whether he  would himself readily or sincerely put his hand to his own in the cause of mercy. Does he who endures not at all to be cut by another, himself draw the sword on his own body? Patience in losses is an exercise in charity and sharing. He who is not vexed to give, fears not to loose. Tertullian, from On Patience