The Work of an Empress

Ἐἰκε δέ καὶ ἀλλην ἀφορμὴν ὠφελείας ὁ Βασιλεύς. Ἡ γὰρ τοῦ γάμου τὸν ζυγὸν μετ’ αὐτοῦ δεξαμένη, τῶν θείων αυτῷ συνεχῶς ἀνεμίμνησκε νόμων, ἑαυτὴν τούτους πρῶτον ἀκριβῶς ἐκπαιδεύσασα. Οὐ γὰρ ἑπῆρεν αὐτὴν τῆς βασιλείας ἡ δυναστεία, ἀλλὰ τὸν θεῖον πλέον ἐπύρσευσε πόθον. Τῆς γάρ εὐεργεσίας τὸ μέγεθος μεῖζον τὸ περὶ τὸν εὐεργέτην εἰργάζετο φίλτρον. Αὐτίκα γοῦν καὶ τῶν τὸ σῶμα πεπηρωμένων, καὶ ἀπαντα τὰ μέλη λελωβημένη, παντοδαπὴν ἐποιεῖτο φροντίδα, οὐκ οἰκέταις, οὐδὲ δορυφόποις ὑπουργοῖς κεχρημένη, ἀλλ’ αὐτουργός γιγνομένη, καὶ εἰς τὰς τούτων καταγωράς ἀφικνουμένη, καὶ ἐκαστῳ τὴν χρείαν πορίζουσα. Οὐτω καὶ τῶν ἐκκλησιῶν τοὺς ξενῶνας περινοστοῦσα τοὺς κλινουπετεῖς δι’ ἐαυτῆς ἑνοσήλευεν, ἀῦτη καὶ χύτρας ἀπτομένη, καὶ ζωμοῦ γευομένη, καὶ τρύβλιον προσφέρουσα, καὶ ἄρτον κλῶσα, καὶ ψωμοὺς ὀρέγουσα, καὶ κύλικα ἀποκλύζουσα, καὶ τάλλα πάντα ἐργαζομένη, ὄσα οἰκετῶν καὶ θεραπαινίσων ἔργα νενόμισται. Καὶ τοῖς τὴν αὐτοργίαν ἐπέχειν πειρωμένοις ἐπέλεγεν, ὡς Τὸ μὲν χρυσίον διανέμειν τῇ βασιλείᾳ προσήκει· ἐγὼ δὲ ὑπὲρ αὐτῆς γε βασιλείας τὴν αὐτουργίαν τᾡ δεδωκότι προσφέρω.   Θεοδωρητος Ἐπισκοπος Κυρρος, Ἐκκλησιαστίκη Ἱστορία

And the Emperor had another occasion for improvement, for Flacilla, she given to the yoke of marriage with him, often reminded him of the Divine laws, a matter in which she had first carefully educated herself. For she was not exalted by the royal power, but she was rather inflamed by it with longing for the Divine; the magnitude of the greatness given to her making the love for Him who gave it all the greater. To the maimed and the mutilated she directed her attention, and not requiring assistance from her household and guards, she herself went to the resting houses, bringing what each one there needed. She also went around the guest chambers of the churches and herself nursed those laying therein, herself handling pots and pans, tasting soup, bringing in bowls, breaking bread, offering morsels, washing cups, and doing all such work which is proper to servants and maids. And to those who attempted to stop her doing these things she would say, ' As it befits a sovereign to hand out gold; I, on account of the sovereign power that has been given me, bring my service to He who gave it.' Theodoret of Cyrrhus, Ecclesiastical History

Educating an Empress

Reginam te orbis Romanus suspicit: et quia jam nihil est, quo amplius crescere debeas in rebus humanis, sublimitatibus non contenta terrenis, sacra in Deum fide coelestia desideras possidere, quae verus Filius Dei, in se pie credentibus pollicetur, quae haec quasi una de sapientissimus elaboras, intelligans omnem hanc regni sublitatem nihil profuturam, si non ad coelestem gloriam consequendam verae fidei cognitione et defensione contendas. Et tamen apparet, quam grata sis in Christo Deo et Domino nostro, qui vobis hoc regnum tribuit; cum sollicita interrogatione perquiris, quomodo capitula illa solvantur, quae ab Arianis adversus Catholicos sacrae legis interpretationibus opponuntur. Habens affectum verae fidei, cupis, prout possibile est, intelligere, quod fideliter credis. Quia est tunc magis anima religosa, velut divinis epulis pascitur, cum quod credit, intelligit. Sed et cum exsecreris impias voces haereticorum, tamen religioso studio instrui adversus eos desideras, ut et rationem jam respuas: ne hoc quod exsecraris, quasi ex regni potentia, praesumptionis videatur esse, non probationis.   De Trinitate, Sive de Fide Contra Arianos, Ad Augustam Flaccillam, Faustinus Presbyter

He has taken you up to the queenship of the Roman world, and since there is now nothing by which you can grow any more in human things, not content with the heights of the earth, you should desire to possess with faith the heavenly realms in God, which the true Son of God, in his own piety to the faithful promises, by which you may ponder like one of the most wise, understanding that this regal height will not profit if it not bring to celestial glory in the true knowledge of faith and that you may strive in its defence. And though it may appear that you may have grace with Christ God and our Lord, who has given to you this kingdom, you should with careful questioning seek after how those writings may be resolved, which the Arians, by interpretation of sacred law, employ against Catholics. Having the feeling of the true faith, you should desire, in so far as it is possible, to understand what you faithfully believe. Because it is then that the religious soul, as it were, feasts at the divine banquet, when it understands what it believes. Even when you execrate the impious voices of heretics, you should desire religious instruction, that you may with reason denounce, unless when you abhor, even with the royal power, it seem to be by presumption not prudence. On the Trinity, or On the Faith Against the Arians, To the Empress Flacilla, Faustinus the Presbyter

Separated From The World

Exinde segregati estis ab ipso mundo, quanto magis a saeculo rebusque eius? Nec hoc vos consternet, quod segregati estis a mundo. Si enim recogitemus ipsum magis mundum carcerem esse, exisse vos e carcere, quam in carcerem introisse, intellegemus. Maiores tenebras habet mundus, quae hominum praecordia excaecant. Graviores catenas induit mundus, quae ipsas animas hominum constringunt. Peiores immunditias exspirat mundus, libidines hominum. Plures postremo mundus reos continet, scilicet universum hominum genus. Iudicia denique non proconsulis, sed Dei sustinet.Quo vos, benedicti, de carcere in custodiarium, si forte, translatos existimetis. Habet tenebras, sed lumen estis ipsi; habet vincula, sed vos soluti Deo estis. Triste illic exspirat, sed vos odor estis suavitatis. Iudex exspectatur, sed vos estis de iudicibus ipsis iudicaturi. Contristetur illic qui fructum saeculi suspirat. Christianus etiam extra carcerem saeculo renuntiavit, in carcere autem etiam carceri. Nihil interest, ubi sitis in saeculo, qui extra saeculum estis. Et si aliqua amisistis vitae gaudia: negotiatio est aliquid amittere, ut maiora lucreris. Tertullianus, Ad Martyres

So you have been separated from the world itself; how much more from the age and its affairs? Nor should it dismay you that you are separated from the world. If we recognise that the world itself is a greater prison we shall understand that you have rather gone out of prison than gone into prison. Greater darkness has the world which blinds the hearts of men. The world heaps on heaver chains which bind the very souls of men. A worse stench the world emits, the desires of men. More criminals the world contains, that is, the whole race of man. And it awaits the judgment, not of a proconsul, but of God. Therefore, blessed men, consider that you have been translated from a prison to a place, if you will, of safe keeping. It has darkness, but you yourselves are light. It has chains, but you have been released by God. From there a fetor comes forth, but you are a sweet scent. A judge is expected but you shall judge the judges themselves. Let him be sad there who sighs for the enjoyment of the world. The Christian, even when out of prison, has renounced the world; but, when in prison, the prison also. It matters not where you are in the world who are without the world. And if you have lost any of the joys of life, it is of this business that you part with something so that you may gain more. Tertullian, To the Martyrs

Education And Virtue

Ἐιπέ τις τῷ μακαρίῳ Ἀρσενίῳ· Πῶς ἡμεὶς ἀπὸ τοσαύτης παιδεύσεως καὶ σοφίας οὐδὲν ἔχομεν, οὖτοι δὲ οἱ ἀγροῖκοι καὶ Αἰγύπτιοι τοσαύτας ἀρετὰς κέκτηνται; Λέγει αὐτῷ ὁ ἀββᾶς Ἀρσένιος· Ἡμεὶς ἀπὸ τῆς τοῦ κόσμου παιδεύσεως οὐδὲν ἔχομεν· οὖτοι δὲ οἱ ἀγροὶκοι καὶ Αἰγύπτοι ἀπὸ τῶν ἰδίων πόνων ἐκτήσαντο τὰς ἀρετὰς. ᾽Αποφθεγματα των ἀγιων γεροντων, Παλλαδιος Source: Migne PG 65.88d-89a

Someone said to the blessed Arsenius, 'How is it that we for all our education and knowledge have nothing, yet these peasants and Egyptians have acquired such virtue?' Father Arsenius said to him, 'We have nothing from our worldly education, but these peasants and Egyptians by their own travails have acquired virtue.' Sayings of the Desert Fathers, Palladius of Galatia

A Gift And A Loan

Ἀκούετε, οἱ πλοὺσιοι, ὁποῖα συμβουλεύομεν τοῖς πτωχοῖς διὰ τὴν ὑμετέραν ἀπανθρωπίαν· ἐκαρτερεῖν μᾶλλον τοῖς δεινοῖς, ἢ τὰς ἐκ τῶν τὸκων συμφορὰς ὑποδέχεσθαι. Εἰ δὲ ἐπείθεσθε τῷ Κυριῳ, τίς χρεία τῶν λόγων τούτων; Τίς δέ ἐστιν ἡ συμβουλὴ τοῦ Δεσπότου; Δανείζετε παρ’ ὦν οὐκ ἐλπίζετε ἀπολαβεῖν. Καὶ ποῖον, φησὶ, τοῦτο δάνεισμα, ὦ τῆς ἀποδόσεως ἐλπὶς οὐ συνέζευκται; Νόησον τὴν δύναμιν τοῦ ῥητοῦ, καὶ θαυμάσεις τὴν φιλανθρωπίαν τοῦ νομοθετου. Ὅταν πτωχῷ παρέχειν μέλλυς διὰ τὸν Κύριον, τὸ αὐτὸ καὶ δῶρόν ἐστι καὶ δάνεισμα· δῶρόν μὲν διὰ τὴν ἀνελμιστίαν τῆς ἀπολήψεως, δάνεισμα δὲ διὰ τὴν μεγαλοδωρεὰν τοῦ Δεσπότου τοῦ ἀποτιννύντος ὑπερ αὐτοῦ, ὃς, μικρὰ λαβὼν διὰ τοῦ πένητος, μεγάλα ὑπὲρ αὐτῶν ἀποδώσει. Ὁ γάρ ἐλεῶν πτωχόν δανείζει Θεῷ. Ἅγιος Βασίλειος ὁ Μέγας, Ὁμιλία Ἐις Τους Ψαλμούς, Ψαλμός ΙΔ' Source: Migne PG 29.277c

Listen, O rich folk, to the counsel we give to the poor on account of your inhumanity: it is better for you to persevere in wretchedness than to welcome the sufferings of usury. But if you are obedient to the Lord, what need of these words? What is the counsel of the Master? Give to those from whom you do not hope to receive. 1 'And what sort of loan is it,' you may say, 'to which no hope of return attached?' Consider the power of the statement and you will wonder at the kindness of the lawmaker. Whenever you intend to provide for a poor man for the Lord's sake, the same thing is a gift and a loan; a gift because repayment is not sought, but a loan because of the great gift of the Master who pays in his place, He who, receiving a little thing through a needy man, will give great things for it. 'For he who has pity on the poor man, lends to God.' 2 Saint Basil of Caesarea, Homilies on the Psalms, from Psalm 14 1 Lk 6.34-35 2 Prov 19.17

Lost Books

Quod vero sequitur: Sicut scriptum est in libro justorum, ipsum librum hodie nusquam, neque apud ipsos Hebraeos inveniri posse asseverant, sicut nec librum bellorum Domini, cujus in libro Numeroorum mentio est; neque carmina Salomonis, neque disputationes ejus sapientissimas de lignorum, herbarumque omnium, item jumentorum, volucrum, reptilium, piscium; vel quo in libro Verborum dierum dicitur: Reliqua vero operum Salomonis priorum et novissimorum scripta sunt in verbis Nathan prophetae, et in libris Abiae Silonitis. In visione quoque Addo videntis contra Jeroboam filium Nabath, et multa hujusmodi volumina, quae Scriptura quidem fuisse probat, sed hodie constat non esse.  Sanctus Beda, In Libros Regum, Quaestionum XXX

And it follows: 'As it is written in the Book of the Righteous,'1 which book no longer exists today, nor indeed can it be found among the Hebrews, and likewise with the Book of the Wars of the Lord which is mentioned in Numbers, and neither is to be found the Odes of Solomon, nor his wise discussions of trees and every herb and beast and bird and reptile and fish, nor that book of which it is said in Chronicles, 'The rest of the first and later deeds of Solomon are written in the words of the prophet Nathan in the books of Ahia the Silonite and in the vision of seer Addo against Jeroboam son of Nabat,' and so with many other volumes which were once deemed Scripture but today do not exist. Saint Bede, On the Books of Kings, Thirty Questions 1 2 Kings 1.18

Advice to a Community

Melius est enim Deum habere in corde, quam nummos in sacculo. Lectionis sacrae studia inter labores obedientiae vestrae diligentissime exercete, ita ut vel opus, vel libellus in manibus semper videatur vestris, quia in libris sanctis deus loquitur ad hominem, et in orationibus suis homo loquitur ad Deum. Quid dulcius debet esse quam Deum audire loquentem? In his enim et solatia peccator et gaudia benefactor inveniet. Sicut lux laetificat oculos, ita lectio corda. Custodiam oris diligenter observate: verba quae ad aedificationem audientibus faciant semper proferte, quia aliorum salus vestra est retributio. Alcuinus, Epistola LI, Ad Monachos Vedastinos Source: Migne PL 100.216b-c

It is better to have God in the heart than money in the purse. Between your works of obedience exert yourself most diligently in the study of Sacred Scripture, and thus either be at work or always be seen with a book in your hand, for in the holy books God speaks to man and in his prayers man speaks to God. What should be sweeter than to hear the speech of God? In such things the sinner may discover consolation and the benefactor joy. As light is a joy to the eyes, so is reading to the heart. Observe custody of the mouth with all care; let your words be for the profitable edification of they who listen, because the salvation of others is your reward. Alcuin of York, from Letter 51, To the Monks of Vedastinus,

No Excuses

Μηδεὶς βάρος καὶ πλῆθος ἁμαρτιῶν προφασιζόμενος ἀνάξιον ἑαυτὸν τοῦ μοναχικοῦ ἐπαγγέλματος ἀποκα λοῖτο· καὶ διὰ ἡδυπάθειαν ἑαυτὸν εὐτελίζειν νομιζετω, προφασιζόμενος προφάσεις ἐν ἁμαρτίαις. Ὅπου γὰρ πολλὴ ἠ σηπεδών, ἐκαῖ καὶ μεγάλης ἰατρείας χρεία, ἴνα τὸν ῥύπον ἀπόθηται. Οἱ γὰρ ὑγιαίνοντες ἐν ἰατρείω οὐ παραγίνονται. Εἰ βασιλέως ἐπιγείου καλέσαντος, καὶ εἰς τὴν κατὰ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ δουλείαν στρατεῦσαι θελήσαντος, οὐκ ἀναμένομεν, οὐ προφασιζόμεθα· ἀλλὰ πάντα καταλείψανρες προθύμως αὐτὸν καταφθάνομεν· πρόσχωμεν ἑαυτοῖς, μή πως τοῦ Βασιλέως τῶν βασιλέων, καὶ Κυρίου τῶν κυρίων, καὶ Θεοῦ τῶν θεῶν καλοῦντος ἡμᾶς εἰς τὴν οὐράνιον ταύτην τάξιν, ἐξ ὀκνηρὶας, καὶ ῥᾳθυμίας παραιτησώμεθα, καὶ ἐν τῶ μεγαλῳ βήματι εὑρεθῶμεν ἀναπολόγητοι· δυνατὸν μὲν γὰρ καὶ δεδεμένον τοῖς τοῦ βίου πράγμασι, καὶ σιδηραῖς φροντίσι Βαδίζειν, άλλὰ δυσχερῶς. Ἐπεὶ καὶ οἱ σίδηρα περικείμενοι ἐν τοῖς ποσὶν πολλάκις βαδίζουσιν. Ἀλλὰ συνεχῶς προσκόπτουσι, καὶ τραύματα ἐκ τούτου δέχονται.   Ἅγιος Ἰωάννης τῆς Κλίμακος, ἡ Κλίμαξ

Let no one on the account of the weight and multitude of his sins declare himself unworthy of the monastic vow, and because of a delight in pleasures disqualify himself, excusing himself in his sins. For where there is much putrefaction, major treatment is required to draw out the impurity. The healthy do not call on a physician. If a king of this world were to summon us and request us to serve him, we should not delay nor should we make excuses, but we should leave everything and with zeal hurry to him. Let us be alert, then, lest when the King of kings and Lord of lords and God of gods summons us to heavenly office, we because of reluctance and indolence avoid it, and so find ourselves without excuse at the Last Judgment. Yes, it is possible to walk even when weighed down with worldly affairs and heavy cares, but only with difficulty. Even those with their feet bound by irons can often walk, but frequently they stumble and suffer injury. Saint John Climacus, The Ladder

A Bishop's Pride Chastised

Quid enim fratres tui omnes universalis Ecclessiae episcopi, nisi astra coeli sunt? quorum vita simul et lingua inter peccata erroresque hominum quasi inter loctis tenebras lucent. Quibus dum cupis temetipsum vocabulo elato praeponere, eorumque nomen tui comparatione calcare, quid aliud dicis, nisi: In caelo conscendam, super astra coeli exaltabo solium meum? An non universi episcopi nubes sunt, qui et verbis praedicationis pluunt, et bonorum operum luce coruscant? Quos dum vestra fraternitas despiciens, sub se premere conatur, quid aliud dicit nisi hoc, quod ab antiquo hoste dicitur: Ascendam super altitudinem nubium? Quae cuncta ego cum flens conspicio, et occulta Dei judicia pertimesco, augentur lacryme, gemitus se in meo corde non capiunt, quod ille vir sanctissimus dominus Joannes, tantae abstinentiae atque humilitatis, familiarium seductione linguarum ad tantam superbiam erupit, ut in appetitu perversi nominis illi esse conetur similis, qui dum superbe esse similis Deo voluit, etiam donatae similitudinis gratiam amisit; et ideo veram beatitudinem perdidit, quia falsam gloriam quaesivit.   Sanctus Gregorius Magnus, Registri Epistolarum, Liber V, Epistola XVIII, Ad Joannem Episcopum

What indeed are all your brethren, the bishops of the universal Church, but the stars of heaven? Those whose life and speech shine among the sins and errors of men as if amid the darkness. And when you desire to elevate yourself by a proud title and to tread down their name in comparison with yours, what do you say but ' I will ascend into heaven, above the stars of heaven I will exalt my seat?' Are not all the bishops clouds, who rain with words of preaching and who flash with the light of good works? And when your Fraternity despises them, and you would try to press them down beneath yourself, what do say you but what is said by the ancient enemy, ' I will ascend above the heights of the clouds?' All these things I gaze on weeping, and shuddering at the hidden judgments of God, tears flood, and my heart cannot contain its groans, that the most holy man, the lord John, of so great abstinence and humility, has, through the seduction of familiar tongues, burst out into such a pitch of pride that he tries, in desire of that wrongful name, to be like him who, while proudly wishing to be like God, lost even the grace of the likeness granted to him, and thus true blessedness was destroyed because he sought false glory. Saint Gregory the Great, Registry of Letters, Book V, Letter 18, To the Bishop John

Emperor and Slave

Ζήνων δέ, ἐπεὶ τὴν βασιλειαν τοῦ παιδός οἱ τελευτήσαντος μόνος περιεβάλετο, ὥσπερ οὐκ οἰόμενος τῶν ὅλων ἐγκρατὴς γενέσθαι εἰ μὴ καὶ πὰσαις ταῖς ἐπιούσαις ἡδοναῖς μετ’ ἐξουσίας ἐπεξέλθοι, τοσοῦτον ἐκ προοιμίων ἑαυτον ταῖς ἐπιθυμιῶν ἐκδέδωκεν ὡς μηδὲν αὐτὸν ἐπισχεῖν τῶν ἀπρεπῶν τε καὶ ἀθέσμων, ἀλλ’ οὔτως τούτοις ἐμπολιτεύσασθαι ὡς τὸ σκοτίως ταῦτα καὶ ἐν παραβύστῳ γίγνεσθαι χαμερπὲς εἰναι νομίζειν, τὸ δέ γε ἀναφανδὸν καὶ ὥσπερ ἐξ ἀπόπτου βασιλικὸν καὶ αὐτοκράτορι μονῳ πρέπον, κακῶς καὶ δουλοπρεπῶς κρίνας. Οὐκ ἐξ ὠν γὰρ ἑτέρων κρατεῖν πέφυκεν ὁ αὐτοκράτωπ γνωρίζεται, ἀλλ’ ἐξ ὠν ἑαυτοῦ πρῶτον ἀρχει τε καὶ κρατεῖ, μηδενὶ τῶν ἀτόπων παρείσδυσιν ἑαυτῷ διδούς, οὔτω δὲ ἀνάλωτος ταῖς ἀκρασίας ὑπάρχων ὡς ζῶν ἄγαλμα τῶν ἀρετῶν εἰναι πρὸς μίμησιν, ἐκπαιδεύων τὸ ὑπήκοον. Ὁ δὲ ταὶς ἡδοναῖς ἑαυτόν ἀνοιγνυς λέληθε κατὰ σμικρὸν δοῦλος αἰσχιστος δορυάλωτος ἀνάποινος γιγνόμενος δεσποτείας συχνὰς ἀμείβων ἰσα τοῖς ἀρχείοις τῶν δούλων, εἴπερ ἀναρίθμητοι τῶν ἡδονῶν αἱ δέσποιναι καθεστᾶσιν, ἥκιστα πέτας τῆς συνεχείας τε καὶ τῆς σφῶν ἀλληλουχίας ἔχουσαι· ἀει τῆς ἐν χερσὶν ἡδονῆς οὐχ ἰσταμένης, ὑπέκκαυμα δὲ καὶ προοίμιον ἐτέρας γιγνομενος ἔως ἠ αὐτοκράτωρ τις ὄντως γιγνόμενος τὴν ὀχλοκρατείαν τῶν ἡδονῶν ξενηλατήσοι, βασιλεύων λοιπὸν οὐ τυραννούμενος, ἠ μέχρι τελευταίας ῥοπῆς δουλεύων τὰ ἐν Ἅιδου καταλάβοι.   Εὐαγρίος Σχολαστικός, Ἐκκλησιαστίκη Ἱστορία

Zeno, who on the passing of his son became sole emperor, as if thinking his power was incomplete without a strenuous pursuit of every available pleasure, so much gave himself to the attractions of desire that he hesitated at nothing even in those things improper and illicit but rather he was such a subject of them that he thought to do such things in darkness and in a corner was slavish but to do them openly was to be seen as kingly and most properly an emperor, a wretched and servile judgement; for a ruler is not known by what power he has over others, but by his own rule and power over himself, so that nothing improper to him slips in, and being thus impregnable to weakness, he is like a living statue of virtue for the imitation and the education of his subjects. But he who leaves himself open little by little becomes a base slave, an unransomable captive, regularly passing from one slave owner to another; since pleasures are a countless attendance of mistresses linked in succession, the pleasure at hand not lasting but being only a kindle and prelude to another, until one with power either expels the mob rule of pleasures, being a king rather than one who is tyrannized, or he is a slave until by death he seizes on the things of Hades. Evagrius Scholasticus, Ecclesiastical History

Using The Royal Time

Prava corrigere, et recta corroborare, et sancta subliminare omni intentione studeat, et nomen Domini Dei excelsi per multa terrarum spatia diltare guadeat, et catholicae fidei lumen in extremis mundi partibus incendere conetur. Haec est, o dulcissime David, gloria, laus et merces tuae in judicio diei magni, et in perpetuo sanctorum consortio; ut diligentissime populum, excellentiae vestrae Deo comissum, corrigere studeas, et ignorantiae tenebris diu animas obcaecatas ad lumen verae fidei deducere coneris. Nunquam optimis voluntatibus, vel bonis conatibus remuneratio divina deerit: sed qui plus laborat in voluntate Dei, plus mercedis recipiet in regno Dei. Tempus hujus vitae velocitar currit, fugit et non revertitur; ineffabilis vero Dei pietas humano praevidebat generi breviter laborare et aeternaliter coronari. Ideo pretiosa debent esse nobis tempora, ne perdamus per negligentiam quod per bonae vitae exercitium habere poterimus aeternum. Alcuinus, Epistola XLIII Ad Carolum Magnum Source: Migne PL 100.207c-208a

One should strive with every effort to improve the depraved and to strengthen the righteous and to edify the holy, and one should rejoice to spread the name of the Lord God Most High through all the span of the earth, and one should try to bring the light of the Catholic faith to the furthest ends of the earth. This is, O beloved David, glory and praise and reward on the great day of judgement, and the perpetual company of the saints, that you should try to lead to the light of faith those who are blind of soul in the darkness of ignorance. Never does the Divine fail to remunerate the best of wills or good efforts, but he who labours more to do the will of God shall receive more in the kingdom of God. Our time of life quickly runs on, it flies off and it will not return. Yet in truth the ineffable piety of God provides for the brief labour of man an eternal crown. Thus should our time be precious to us, lest we destroy by negligence the eternity which with a good life of exertions we were able to have. Alcuin of York, from Letter 43, To Charlemagne

The Absence of a Teacher

Nulla imbutus poetica disciplina Terentianum Maurum sine magistro attingere non auderes; Asper, Cornutus, Donatus et alii innumerabiles requiruntur, ut quilibet poeta possit intellegi, cuius carmina et theatri plausus videntur captare; tu in eos Libros, qui quoquo modo se habeant, sancti tamen divinarumque rerum pleni, prope totius generis humani confessione diffamantur, sine duce irruis, et de his sine praeceptore audes ferre sententiam; nec si tibi aliqua occurrunt quae videantur absurda, tarditatem tuam et putrefactum tabe huius mundi animum, qualis omnium stultorum est, accusas potius, quam eos qui fortasse a talibus intellegi nequeunt! Quaereres aliquem pium simul et doctum, vel qui talis esse multis consentientibus diceretur, cuius et praeceptis melior et doctrina peritior fieres. Non facile reperiebatur? Cum labore investigaretur. Deerat in ea terra quam incolebas? Quae causa utilius cogeret peregrinari? In continenti prorsus latebat, aut non erat? Navigaretur. Si in propinquo trans mare non inveniebatur, progredereris usque ad illas terras, in quibus ea quae illis Libris continentur, gesta esse dicuntur. Quid tale fecimus, Honorate?  Sanctus Augustinus Hipponensis, De Utiliatate Credendi, ad Honoratum

Would you dare criticise Terentianus Maurus when not steeped in instruction on poetry, and without a master, whether he be Asper or Cornutus or Donatus, or one of the countless others, but would you rather have it that a poet can be perfectly understood whose verses merely seem to have won the applause of the theatre; and then do you without a guide rush upon those books, which, however they may actually be, are at least famed to be sacred and full of divine things by the confession of near enough the whole human race, and do you without a teacher dare to offer an opinion upon them? But should you not rather, if in those books you meet something which seems absurd,  accuse your own slow mind rotted by the corruption of this world, as is the way with all the foolish, than denounce those works which cannot be understood by the ignorant? You should seek someone both pious and learned, or one who many agree is said to be so, that you may be both improved by his counsels and made more experienced by his learning. Was he not easy to find? He should be sought with travail. Was he not there in the land in which you lived? What cause could more usefully impel you to travel? Was he quite hidden on your continent or was he not there at all? Set sail. And if in near lands across the sea he is not to be found, you should go on even to those lands where the things contained in those books are said to have been done. Have you done such things, Honoratus? Saint Augustine of Hippo, On the Usefulness of Believing, To Honoratus.

On the Teacher

Ἐῖπε πάλιν ἡ αὐτὴ, ὅτι ὁ διδάσκαλος ὀφείλει εἶναι ξένος φιλαρχίας, καὶ ἀλλότριος κενοδοξίας, μακρὰν ὑπερηφανίας, μὴ ὑπὸ κολακείας ἐμπαιζόμενος, μὴ ὑπὸ δώρων τυφλούμενος, μὴ ὑπὸ γαστρὸς νικώμενος, μὴ ὑπὸ ὀργῆς κρατούμενος· ἀλλὰ μακρόθυμος, ἐπιεικὴς, πάσῃ δυνάμει ταπεινόφρων· ἔγκριτος εἶνα, καὶ ἀνεκτικός· κηδεμονικὸς καὶ φιλόψυχος.  ᾽Αποφθεγματα των ἀγιων γεροντων, Παλλαδιος

Again Mother Theodora said, 'The teacher should be eager for guests and a stranger to vainglory, distant to pride and not moved by flattery, nor blinded by gifts, nor ruled by the stomach, nor under the power of anger; but patient, peaceable and humble in so far as he can be. He should be tolerant, diligent and a lover of souls.' Sayings of the Desert Fathers, Palladius of Galatia

Is Our Way True?

Est vera secta? te, Magister, consulo  rectamne servamus fidem?  an viperina non cavemus dogmata,  et nescientes labimur?  artam salutis vix viam discernere est  inter reflexas semitas,  tam multa surgunt perfidorum conpeta torris polita erroribus, obliqua sese conserunt divortia  hinc inde textis orbitis.  quas si quis errans ac vagus sectabitur,  rectum relinquens tramitem,  scrobis latentis pronus in foveam ruet,  quam fodit hostilis manus,  manus latronum, quae viantes obsidet iter sequentes devium,  quid non libido mentis humanae struat?  quid non malorum pruriat?  statum lacessunt omnipotentis Dei  calumniosis litibus,  fidem minutis dissecant ambagibus  ut quisque lingua est nequior;  solvunt ligantque quaestionum  vincula per syllogismos plectiles.  vae captiosis sycophantarum strophis!  vae versipelli astutiae!  nodos tenaces recta rumpit regula,  infesta dissertantibus.  idcirco mundi stulta delegit Deus,  ut concidant sophistica,  deque inbecillis subiugavit fortia,  simplex ut esset credere,  lapis nostro fixus offensaculo est,  inpingat in quem vanitas,  signum caventi, non caventi scandalum:  hunc sternit, illum dirigit, Prudentius, Apotheosis

Is our way true? You, Master, I ask: do we keep the right faith? Or careless of venomous teaching Do we fall in our ignorance? Hard to see salvation's narrow way among the twisting paths. So many perilous crossroads confront trod smooth by reckless error; so many lanes branch off and away, here and there winding. If a wanderer, a vagrant follows them, leaving the straight track, he will tumble suddenly into a pit which hostile hands have dug, robbers' hands assailing the traveller who has followed the byway. What would human mind's desire not plot? In what evil not have pleasure? They assail the being of almighty God with lying arguments, cutting up faith with thoughts as wild as their tongue is wicked. They lose and bind with chains of subtle syllogisms. Woe to the sharp plays of tricksters! Woe to crafty cunning! The right rule bursts their tight knots, their plague of speech. Thus God has chosen foolish things to ruin the intellectual, and by weakness He bound strength, that faith might be simple. A stone is set to trouble us, vanity strikes itself on it, the wary's sign, the unwary's scandal; one it lays low, another it guides. Prudentius, Apotheosis

The Balance Of Words

Nemo etiam in dolo loquatur ad proximum suum. Laqueus est in labiis nostris, et saepe unusquisque sermonibus suis non explicatur, sed involvitur. Fovea alta est os malevoli: grande innocentiae praecipitium, sed majus malevolentiae. Innocens dum credit facile, cito labitur sed tamen iste lapsus resurgit: maledictus autem suis artibus praecipitatur, unde numquam exsiliat atque evadat. Ponderet ergo unusquisque sermones suos, non cum fraude et dolo: Statera fallax improbabilis apud Deum: non illam stateram dico, quae mercem appendit alienam, et in vilibus quidem rebus caro constat fallacia, sed statera verborum ipsa apud Deum est exsecrabilis, quae praetendit pondus gravitatis sobriae, et subnectit versutias fraudulentiae. Sanctus Ambrosius Mediolanensis, Epistola II, Ad Constantium Episcopum Source: Migne PL 16.882d-883a

Let no one speak deceitfully to his neighbour. There is a snare on our lips, and often is it that a man is not freed but trapped by his speech. 1 The mouth of the malevolent is a deep pit; great is the fall of innocence, but more is that of malevolence. 2 The innocent man, when he too easily trusts, quickly falls, but fallen he rises again; yet the man who speaks evil is thrown headlong by his art so that he can never recover and escape. Therefore let every man weigh his words, but not with deceit and guile, for: 'a false balance is abomination to the Lord.' 3 And I do not mean that balance which weighs the wares of others, though even in minor matters deceit often costs dear, but that balance of words which is detestable to the Lord, that which pretends to the weight of sober gravity but rests on deceitful artifices. Saint Ambrose, from Letter 2, To the Bishop Constantius 1 Prov 6.2 2 Prov 22.14 3 Prov 11.1