Strict Judgements

Οὐκ ἀπονοίας ἐστιν, ὦ φιλολογώτατε, ὁ κατὰ τῶν πταισάντων φόνος τοῦ σοφωτάτου Πέτρου, ἀλλὰ διδασκαλίας προγνωστικῆς, τὰ πολλὰ τῶν ἀνθρώπων προϊωμένης ἁμαρτήματα. Τότε γὰρ ἀρξάμενοι τὰ τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου καταβάλλεσθαι σπέρματα· καὶ εὐθὺς παρανατείλαντα ἐωρακότες ζιζάνια, σοφῶς αὐτὰ παραχρῆμα ἐξέτιλαν, ἵνα μὴ τῷ σιωῷ συναυξνθέντα, τῷ μέλλοντι πρὸς καῦσιν πυρὶ φυλαχθῇ. Οὔτω καὶ Μωσῆς ὁ θεσπέσιος τὰ τοῦ νόμου ἐκ προοιμίων παραβαθέντα θεώμενος, εἰ καὶ ἐπὶ βραχεῖ ἁμαρτὴματι καταλευσθῆναι ἐν σαββάτῳ ξυλολογοῦντα ἐκέλευσε, τοῦτο Θεὸν γεγραφὼς ἀποφήνασθαι. Ἐπὶ μικρῷ γὰρ καὶ μείζονι ἡ παραβασις κρίνεται. Ὡς καὶ οἱ πρῶτοι τοῦ γένους προπάτοες ξύλου γεύσει τὸν πολυώδυνον κατεδικάσθησαν καὶ βίον καὶ θάνατον Ἅγιος Ἰσίδωρος Του Πηλουσιώτου, Βιβλιον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολή ΡΠΑ´ Ὠριονι Μονακῳ Source: Migne PG 78.300c

Not without sense, most learned man, against those who erred came death from the most wise Peter, 1 but it is a prescient teaching, foreseeing the many sins of men. For then when they began to throw forth the seed of the Gospel, instantly perceiving the weeds born, with wise counsel they swiftly tore them up, lest one of them growing with the wheat be protected against future fire. 2 In the same way the saintly Moses, considering violations of the law, even for a small error, such as the gathering of sticks on the Sabbath, nevertheless commanded stoning, and in this revealed God, that transgressions in both little things and great are judged. So even the first of our race, tasting the fruit of the tree, were condemned to a most bitter life and death. Saint Isidore of Pelusium, Book 1, Letter 181, To the Monk Orion 1 Acts 5.5-10 2 Mt 13.25

Hope For Weeds

Ne forte colligentes zizania, eradicetis simul cum eis et triticum.  Sic imperiti erant cultores, sic operis nescii, sic discretionis scientiam non habentes, ut evellentes zizania, eradicarent et triticum? Ubi sunt prophetae per Dei spiritum prophetantes? Ubi Petrus cui Pater revelat? Ubi Paulus in quo operatur et loquitur Christus? Ubi omnes sancti, plane sancti, sed servi, tantum scientes, quantum singulis scientiarum largitor indulsit? Sed dicis, Hoc occultuum nil erat, nil erat ibi occultum, quando aliud videbatur in specie; aliud habebatur in flore; et quod hodie erat ziania, cras in triticum vertebatur: sic hodie habetur haereticus, qui crastina fit fidelis; et qui ad praesens peccator cernitur, ad furturm justus assistit. Hinc est etiam quod auctor utraque referebat ad messem, id est, usque ad judicium divinae patientiae sua et nostrae poenitentiae tempus, ut qui de se malo commutarit ad bonum, Dominicum deputetur in triticum, coelestibus horreis aggregandusl qui se de fideli fecerit infidelem, gehennae deputetur incendio. Et quid plura? Si zizaniis non Dei paetinetia subveniret, nec Matthaeum de Publicano evangelistam, nec Paulum de persecutore apostolum Ecclesia possideret. Denique Ananias eradicare tritcum tunc quaerebat, quando ad Sauleum missus, de Paulo talia querebatur: Domine, quanta mala fecit sanctis tuis, hic est, eradica zizania; quid ad lupum ovis? quid ad contumacem devotus? quid ad persecutorem talis praedictor missus? Sed cum Ananias videret Saulum, Paulum Dominus tunc videbat; cum Ananias persecutorem diceret, tunc Dominus praedictorem sciebat; et cum ille eum zizania judicaret inferni, Christus eum vas electionis, triticum in coelesti horreo jam ponebat. Sanctus Petrus Chrysologus, Sermo XCVII, De Parbola Zizaniorum Source: Migne PL 52.473c-474b

Lest perhaps when collecting the weeds you tear up the wheat with them. 1 Were the workers in the field so unskilled, so ignorant of their work, so lacking in the knowledge of distinguishing things that when plucking up the weeds they would uproot the wheat? Where are the prophets through the spirit of God prophesying? Where is Peter to whom the Father granted revelation? Where is Paul in whom Christ worked and spoke? Where are all the saints, saints but servants, only wise because He who gives granted them wisdom? But, you say, nothing was hidden, nothing there was hidden, since something appeared, another thing was found in the flower. What today is a weed may be turned into wheat tomorrow. So today a man may be a heretic who tomorrow will be made faithful, and he who is presently noted as a sinner in the future may stand as one of the righteous. So when the author refers to the harvest, it is that which is within the judgement of the Divine patience and the time of our repentance, that he who is evil may change to good, the Lord harvesting him as wheat and adding him to the celestial granary, and he who from faith made himself unfaithful will be pruned for the fire of hell. And what more? If there was no patience of God for the weeds, neither Matthew the tax collector would have become an Evangelist, nor would Paul the persecutor of the Church have become an Apostle. Ananias sought to pull up the wheat when being sent to Saul, for he complained, 'Lord, he does much evil to your holy ones!' 2 That is, Tear up the weeds!. Why indeed send a sheep to a wolf? Why send the devout to the proud? Why send such a preacher to a persecutor? But when Ananias saw Saul, The Lord saw Paul, when Ananias spoke of a persecutor, then the Lord knew a preacher, and when Ananias judged him to be a weed fit for the infernal fire, Christ marked him as a vessel of election, wheat to be placed in the heavenly granary. Saint Peter Chrysologus, from Sermon 97, On The Parable of the Wheat And Tares 1 Mt 13.19 2 Acts 9.10-17

Letting Down One's Guard

Πόθεν, ἔφης, οἱ πονηροὶ ἐκ τῆς καρδίας ἐξέρχονται, καὶ κοινοῦσι τὸν ἄνθρωπον; Ἐκ τοῦ καθεύδειν τοὺς γεωργοὺς ἐγρηγορέναι· ὀφείλοντας, καὶ φυλάττειν τοῦ καλοῦ σπέρματος τὸν καρπὸν ἀναθάλλοντα. Εἰ γὰρ μὴ κόρῳ καὶ κάρῳ τὴν ἑαυτῶν φυλακὴν προδεδώκειμεν, τὴν θείαν εἰκόνα μολύναντες, τουέστι τὸ καλὸν σπέρμα νοθεύσαντες, ὁ τῶν ζιζανίων σπορεὺς οὐκ ἂν εὖρε παρείαδυσιν, καὶ ἄξια πυρὸς ζιζάναι ἐν ἡμῖν κατειργάσατο. Ἅγιος Ἰσίδωρος Του Πηλουσιώτου, Βιβλίον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολή ΡϟΔ', Ὠριονι Μονακῳ Source: Migne PG 78.305d-308a

Whence, you say, comes wickedness from the heart to speak to men? From the slumber of the farmers it is made, they who should be guarding the fruit that has sprung up from good seed. For if we have not guarded ourselves from indolence and sleep beforehand, the Divine image is contaminated, that is, the good seed is debased, and the sower of weeds is not discovered by watching, and the weeds worthy of fire are thrust deep within us. Saint Isidore of Pelusium, Book 1, Letter 194, to the Monk Orion

Weeds In The Church

Nam, etsi videntur in Ecclesia esse zizania, non tamen impediri debet aut fides aut charitas nostra, ut quoniam zizania esse in Ecclesia cernimus, ipsi de Ecclesia recedamus. Nobis tantum modo laborandum est ut frumentum esse possimus, ut, cum coeperit frumentum Dominicis horreis condi, fructum pro opere nostro et labore capiamus. Apostolus in epistola sua dicit: In domo autem magna non solum vasa sunt aurea et argentea, sed et lignea et fictilia, et quaedam quidem honorata, quaedam vero inhonorata. Nos operam demus, fratres charissimi, et quantum possumus laboremus ut vasa aurea vel argentea simus. Caeterum, fictilia vasa confringere Domino soli concessum est, cui et virga ferrea data est.  Sanctus Cyprianus, Epistula LI, Ad Confessores, De Reditu Ex Schismate Congratulatoria Source: Migne PL 4.344

For even if there seem to be weeds in the Church, neither our faith nor our charity should be impeded, so that because we see weeds in the Church we should withdraw ourselves from the Church. We ought only to labour that we are able to be the wheat, that when the wheat begins to be gathered into the Lord's barns, we may receive fruit for our labour and work. The Apostle in his epistle says: 'In a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and of earth, some honourable and some dishonourable.' 1 Let us strive, dearest brethren, to labour as much as we can, that we may be vessels of gold or silver. For the rest, to the Lord alone it is granted to break the vessels of earth, to whom is given the rod of iron. 2 Saint Cyprian, from Letter 51, To the Confessors, Celebrating Their Return From Schism 1 2 Tim 2.20 2 Ps 2.9